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THE 

FIFTY-THIRD   CHAPTER 

IS  AIAH( ''^'^^^^  -^  ^9^-4^ 


h>.. 


ACCOBDING  TO 


THE    JEWISH    INTERPRETERS 


11.  TRANSLATIONS 

BY 

S.    R.    DRIVER 

AlfD 

AD.'  NEUBAUER 
With  an  Introduction   to   the   Translations 

BT 

REV.    E.     B.     PUSEY 

Regius  Professor  of  llebreiv,  Oxford 


JAMES  PARKER  AND  CO.  T.  0.  WEIGEL 

1877 

[J  U    nghU    reserved  ] 


OXFORD: 

BY     E.     PICKARD     HALL     AND     J.     H.    STACY, 
PRINTERS  TO   THE   UNIVERSITY. 


PREFACE. 


It  is  now  more  than  two  years  since  the  Kegius 
Professor  of  Hebrew  in  this  University  invited 
Mr.  Neubauer  to  undertake  the  task  of  editing  a 
complete  catena  of  Jewish  commentaries  on  the 
remarkable  chapter  which  has  for  ages  formed  one 
of  the  principal  battle-fields  between  Christians 
and  their  Jewish  opponents^.  The  request  was 
gladly  acceded  to  ;  and  the  collection  in  the  present 
volume  comprises  not  merely  commentaries  strictly 
so  called,  but  also  extracts  relating  to  the  same 
subject  from  works  of  controversy  and  other 
sources,  whether  composed  in  Hebrew  or  in  any 
of  the  other  languages  adopted  by  Jews  from  time 
to  time  in  the  varied  homes  of  their  exile.  These 
are  arranged,  as  nearly  as  possible,  in  chronological 
order.  In  the  pages  that  follow  (which,  with  the 
exception  of  a  few  additional  references,  are  sub- 
stantially a  translation  of  the  Hebrew  preface  pre- 
fixed to  the  companion  volume)  will  be  found  a 

»  With  the  addition,  naturally,  of  the  tliree  verses  of  the  fifty-second 
apter,  which  have  been  unfortunately  severed  from  it. 

a  2 


IV  PREFACE. 

list  of  the  authors  cited,  with  Mr.  Neubauer's  own 
account  of  the  authorities  consulted  by  him,  and 
of  the  sources,  whether  printed  or  manuscript,  from 
which  in  each  case  the  text  has  been  derived. 

1.  The  Septuagint,  accoi'ding  to  TischcndoiTs  third  edition 
(Leipzig,  1874),  together  with  such  fragments  as  remain  of  the 
'revised'  versions  of  Aquila,  Symmachus,  and  Theodotion,  as 
given  in  Dr.  Field's  Hexapla  (Oxford,  1874)^. 

2.  The  Targumc,  or  (so-called)  Chaldee  Paraphrase,  of  Yona- 
than  ben  'Uzziel,  according  to  the  printed  editions,  and  MSS.  at 
Paris  ('P.')  and  Oxford  ('  0.') 

3.  Notices  in  the  Talmud,  whether  of  Jerusalem  or  Babylon, 
in  the  Midrash  Kabbah,  Tanhuma,  and  the  Yalqut  Shim'onid; 
also  in  Siphre  (as  cited  by  Raymundus  Martini  e  in  his  celebrated 
work,  the  Pugio  Fidei),  and  the  P'siqtha  (as  cited  by  Hulsius, 
in  his  Theologia  Judaica,  1643,  from  the  7DII  np3X). 


^  Here  ought  strictly  to  have  been  added  the  extract  cited  on  p.  41 2,  which 
shews  that  already  in  the  time  of  Origen  (190-250),  the  application  of  the 
prophecy  to  Israel  dispersed  in  exile  was  not  unknown  among  the  Jews. 

<=  Information  respecting  Jewish  literature  in  general  may  be  found  in 
Jost,  Geschichte  des  Judcnthumes  und  seiner'  Secten  (3  vols., Leipzig,  1857-9)  ; 
Gratz,  Geschiclite  der  Jxiden,  second  edition,  more  especially  vols,  v-ix ; 
Etheridge,  Introd.  to  Hthrew  Literature  (London,  1856)  ;  and  Steinschneider, 
Jewish  Literature  (London,  1857).  On  the  Targums  in  particular,  see  tlie 
article  in  Smith,  Diet,  of  the  Bible,  iii.  p.  1637  ff". ;  on  the  Talmud  and  other 
Rabbinical  works  mentioned  under  No.  3,  instructive  notices  will  be  found 
in  the  preface  to  Neubauer's  La,  Geographic  da  Talmud  (Paris,  1868)  ;  in 
Deutsch's  Literary  Remains  (London,  1874);  or  Schtirer's  Lehrhuch  der 
neutestamentlichcn  Zeitgeschichte  (Leipzig,  1874),  p.  35  ff.,  where  the  further 
literature  is  quoted,  among  which  should  be  named  in  particular  Zunz,  Gottes- 
diemtlichc  Vortrdge  der  Judcn  (Berlin,  1832).  Reference  may  also  be  made 
to  the  various  articles,  '  Midrash,'  etc.,  in  Kitto's  Cyclopaedia. 

d  Etheridge,  p.  409. 

0  Of  this  remarkable  man,  the  learned  and  powerful  antagonist  of  Judaism 
in  Spain,  in  the  second  half  of  the  thirteenth  century,  scarcely  any  account 


PliEFACE.  V 

4.  The  Zoliar.  Although  agreeing  myself  with  the  most 
recent  Jewish  historians,  who  assign  this  hook  to  a  far  later 
clatef  and  believing,  in  fact,  that  the  writer  lived  unquestionably 
after  the  time  of  Nahmanides  (see  chap,  xx),  yet  in  deference  to 
others,  and  amongst  them  Dr.  Pusey,  who  are  still  of  opinion 
that  it  is  of  much  greater  antiquity,  and  that  its  author  was 
none  other  than  the  '  Tanna,'  R.  Shim'on  ben  Yohai,  I  have 
inserted  the  extracts  from  it  immediately  after  those  from  the 
Talmud.  In  a  parallel  column  is  annexed  a  Hebrew  version 
from  a  MS.  in  the  Bodleian  Library,  Oxford  (0pp.  107),  made 
in  the  year  1602  s. 

5.  The  Arabic  version  of  the  Ga'Dnl",  11.  Sa'adyah,  the  earliest 
commentator  whose  writings  are  now  extant  (tenth  century), 
according  to  the  Oxford  MS.  (PoC.  32),  This  was  published 
by  Paulus  (Jena,  1 790-1);  some  various  readings  from  a  MS. 

seems  to  exist  in  English.  The  Pugio  Fidei,  a  monument  of  erudition  and 
research,  was  first  published,  with  elaborate  notes,  by  De  Voisin  in  1651  ; 
quartum  jam  sacculum  in  pulvere  sovdido  cum  hlattis  et  tineis  Inctans  Ray- 
mundus  delitescchat,  writes  the  Bishop  of  Louvain,  who  discovered  the  manu- 
script. There  is  another  edition  by  Carpzov  (1668).  Compare  Griitz,  vii*. 
1 63,  who  refers  for  further  particulars  to  Quetif's  Ewtoria  ordinis  Praedica- 
torum  (Lut.  Par.,  1719),  i.  397.  It  should,  however,  be  observed,  with  refer- 
ence to  the  extract  from  Siphra.  (p.  10),  that  the  words  relating  to  the  Messiah 
are  not  to  be  found  in  the  printed  editions  or  in  the  Bodleian  MS.  150 ;  com- 
pare Jennings  and  Lowe,  The  Psalms  {Book  v),  p.  239.  But  on  the  question 
of  the  accuracy  of  Martini's  citations,  and  on  the  confirmation  which  some,  at 
least,seem  to  derive  from  another  source,  see  further  below,  pp.  xxxii-xxxvi. 

'  Jost,  ii.  291,  iii.  74-79  ;  and  especially  Griitz,  vii-.  219  ff.,  466  ff. ;  Franck, 
La  Cabhale  (Paris,  1843);  Etheridgc,  p.  312. 

g  See  Neubauer,  Catal.  of  Heb.  MSS.  in  the  Bodl.  Libr.,  No.  1561.  The 
Zohar  was  also  translated  from  Chaldee  into  Hebrew  in  Spain,  as  appears 
from  the  Refutation  of  Alfonso  di  Zamora  (1520)  preserved  in  the  Library  of 
the  Escurial :  see  Archives  des  missions  sciodijiqiies  et  litteraires,  2™»  serie, 
V.  428  (Paris,  1868). 

•>  The  designation  given  to  the  chiefs  of  the  Rabbinical  school  at  Sora, 
in  Babylonia :  Jost,  ii.  25 2  ;  Etheridge,  pp.  213,  218.  The  name  appears  to  be 
an  equivalent  expression  to  the  Latin  c.rcellcntia,  used  as  a  title  of  dignity. 
On  Sa'adyah,  see  Jost,  ii.  275-286  ;  Gratz,  v.  p.  302  ff. 


VI  PREFACE. 

recently  acquired  by  the  Paris  Library  (No.  1325)  will  be  found  ' 
in  tlie  Addenda. 

6.  The  translation  and  commentary  by  the  Qaraite>,  Yepheth 
ben  'Ali-J,  a  contemporary  k  of  Sa'adyah's,  according  to  the  MS., 
No.  569,  in  the  Imperial  Library  at  St.  Petersburg. 

7.  The  Midrash  known  as  the  Mysteries  of  E.  Shim'on  ben 
Yohai,  and  accordingly  attributed  to  this  writer,  but  compiled, 
as  it  would  appear  in  fact,  during  the  eleventh  century. 

8.  A  notice  by  R.  Mosheh  had-Darshan^  of  Narboune  (eleventh 
century),  in  his  BresTiiiJi  Rahhd — now,  unfortunately,  no  longer 
extant™ — as  cited  by  Eaymundus  Martini  °. 

9.  E,.  Tobiyyah  ben  'Eli'ezer  (contemporary  of  E.  Mosheh  had- 
Darshano)  in  his  work,  the  Leqah  tob,  according  to  the  printed 
edition. 

I  o.  E.  Sh'lomoh  Yizhaqi,  the  celebrated  French  commentator, 
born  about  1030  at  Troyes,  more  familiarly  known  as  EashiP. 
Appended  is  a  fragment  no  longer  to  be  found  either  in  the 
printed  books  or  in  MSS.,  but  attributed  to  Eashi  on  the 
authority  of  Eaymundus  Martini  {Pug.  Fid.  pp.  311,  429). 

ri.  The  Commentary  of  E.  Yoseph  Qara,  likewise  a  French 
scholar,  according  to  MSS.  at  Paris  and  in  the  Laurentian 
Library  at  Florence.  These,  however,  were  all  injured  and 
partly  erased ;   and  it  was  only  after  the  greater  part  of  both 

'  On  the  Qaraites,  the  name  borne  by  those  Jews  who  reject  the  traditions 
of  the  Talmud,  see  Jost,  ii.  294-381 ;  Griitz,  v.  174  ff. 

J  His  translation  of  the  Psalms  has  been  edited  by  the  Abbe  Barges 
(Paris,  1846). 

^  See  Pinsker,  LicJcute  Qadmoniot  (Wien,  i860),  i.  p.  169. 

'  I.  e.  'the  Preacher  :'  Etheridge,  pp.  423,  427  ;  see  also  Zunz,  p.  287. 

"»  See  R.  Sh'lomoh  Buber  in  the  Maggid,  1872,  p.  2S1. 

"  It  is  possible  that  this  also  may  be  the  BWeshith  lidbha  and  Q'fannah 
cited  by  Alfonso  di  Zamora  :  see  Archives,  etc.,  loc.  cit. 

°  Zunz,  loc.  cit.  The  composition  of  the  Leqah  tob  was  begun,  according 
to  a  note  in  the  Oxford  MS.  (Hunt.  397),  in  the  year  1097  :  see  the  new  Catal. 
of  Heb.  MSS.  in  the  Bodleian  Library,  No.  162. 

p  See  Zunz,  Zeitschrift  fur  die  Wissenschaft  des  Jvdenihums,  Berlin,  1823, 
p.  277  ff.;  Griitz,  vi.  p.  77  tf. 


PREFACE,  Vll 

volumes  were  in  type  that  I  was  fortunate  enough  to  find  the 
missing  portions  in  a  MS.  in  the  possession  of  my  friend  Herr 
Raphael  Kirchheim.  These  will  be  found  in  the  Addenda 
(Hebrew,  p.  398 ;  English,  p.  569). 

1 2.  The  Commentary  of  R.  Abraham  Tbn  'Ezra,  according  to 
the  printed  editions  and  MSS.  at  Paris,  Parma,  and  Rome.  In 
the  Addenda,  p.  400,  are  given  readings  from  some  more  accu- 
rate MSS.  employed  by  Lanado,  and  also  from  one  which  I  met 
with  myself  in  the  Library  at  Leeuwarden.  It  is  expected  that 
before  long  'Ibn  'Ezra's  entire  commentary  on  Isaiah  will  be 
published  under  the  editorship  of  Dr.  Friedlauder  1. 

13.  The  Commentary  of  R.  David  Qamhi  [Kimchi],  according 
to  the  printed  text,  and  MSS.  at  Oxford.  The  Seplier  ha-Galuy 
of  his  father,  referred  to  by  him  both  in  his  Commentary  and 
also  in  his  '  Book  of  Roots,'  of  which  all  previous  enquirers  have 
supposed  no  copy  to  be  in  existence,  I  discovered  recently 
in  the  Vatican  Library  (No.  402).  The  author  composed  it  at 
the  age  of  sixty  years :  it  consists  of  a  series  of  grammatical 
observations  on  the  works  of  M'nahem  ben  Saruq,  of  Dunash 
ben  Labrat,  and  of  R.  Ya'qob  Tham  ;  there  are  annotations  to  it 
by  Binyamin  (ben  Y'hudah  1).  I  hope  at  a  future  time  to  be  in 
a  position  to  publish  it.  As  to  the  Book  of  the  Covenant,  by  the 
same  author,  also  referred  to  by  his  son,  a  controversial  treatise 
bearing  that  title  has  been  published  at  Constantinople  under 
the  name  of  Yoseph  Qamhi ;  it  does  not,  however,  contain  any- 
thing relating  to  the  fifty-third  chapter  of  Isaiah. 

14.  An  extract  from  the  fifth  chapter  of  the  Wars  of  the  Lord, 
a  work  attributed  in  the  Oxford  MSS.,  Mich.  269,  Bodl.  58,  to 
R,  Ya'qob  bar  Reuben,  the  Rabbanitef,  and  stated  to  have  been 
composed  by  him  in  the  year  1 1 70,  when  he  was  twenty, or,  accord- 
ing to  the  acrostic  at  the  end  of  the  MS.,  when  he  was  thirty-six 
years  old.    The  MSS. Mich.  221,  Mich.  113,  0pp.  581,  have  further 

1  His  translation  has  already  appeared  (London,  1874). 
■■  The  '  Rabbanites'  are  the  opponents  of  the  '  Qaraites,'  so  called  because 
they  acknowledge  the  authority  of  the  doctors  or  Rabbis. 


Vlll  PREtACB. 

been  consulted :  the  last  mentioned  commences  with  the  words, 
'  Says  R.  Sa'adyah  Ga'on  .  .  . ,'  and  styles  the  book  the  Refutation, 
which  in  fact  is  also  the  name  by  which  it  is  denoted  at  the  end 
of  Mich.  269  :  Mosheh  Kohen  cites  it  anonymously,  and  R.  Shem 
Tob  ben  Shaprut  (cf  p.  97)  ascribes  it  to  R.  Yoseph  Qamhi. 
The  work  is  divided  into  twelve  chapters,  a  poxlion  of  the  last 
of  which  has  been  jirinted". 

15.  The  Commentary  of  Mar  Ya'qob  ben  Reuben,  the  Qaraite 
(a  contemporary  of  his  namesake  the  Rabbanite),  known  as  the 
Book  of  Riches.  "For  this  a  Paris  MS.  ('  P.')  has  been  used, 
collated  through  the  kindness  of  Prof,  de  Goeje  with  a  MS.  at 
Leyden  ('  L.') 

1 6.  A  translation  with  short  commentary,  composed  in  Arabic 
by  an  unknown  author,  on  Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  and  the  Minor 
Prophets,  from  an  Oxford  MS.  (Hunt.  206).  At  the  end  of 
Jeremiah,  it  is  stated  that  the  author  completed  it  in  the  year 
1 1 96.     It  follows  closely  the  Tai'gum  of  Yonathan*. 

17.  A  commentary  by  a  French  scholar  from  an  Oxford  MS. 
(0pp.  625).  From  some  verses  at  the  end  it  aj)pears  probable 
that  the  author  may  have  been  R,  Eli'ezer  of  Beaugenci",  who 
>vi'ote  likewise  the  commentary  on  Ezekiel,  and  possibly  also 
the  one  on  the  Minor  Prophets  contained  in  the  same  MS.^ 

18.  An  extract  from  the  work  Yosejph  the  Zealot  by  Yoseph 
ben  Nathan,  I'Official,  of  Sens,  who  lived  about  the  middle  of  the 
thirteenth  century  w.  The  work  exists  in  manuscript  at  Paris 
('  P.')  and  Hamburg  ('  H.') 


*  At  least,  according  to  the  assertion  of  Steinschneider,  Catalogue  of  rrinted 
Hebrew  Boolcs  in  the  Bodleian  Library,  col.  2032 ;  but  I  have  not  myself 
been  able  to  find  it,  as  in  the  volume  referred  to  by  him  the  leaves  that  must 
have  contained  it  have  been  torn  away. 

*  On  the  commentary  upon  the  Minor  Prophets,  see  Merx,  Archiv  fur 
vnssenschaftliche  Erforschunf/en  des  alien  Testaments,  i.  ii. 

n  Cf.  Zunz,  Zur  Literatur  und  GescMchte,  p.  79. 

"  See  the  new  Catal.  of  Ileb.  MSS.  in  the  Bodl.  Libr.,  No.  1265. 

"  Histoire  litteraire  de  la  France,  xxi.  p.  509. 


PREFACE.  IX 

19.  From  the  Commentary  upon  I.saiali  by  Y'sha'yah  ben 
Mali  of  Trani,  the  Elder,  a  contemporary  of  Yoseph  ben  Nathan's, 
according  to  MSS.  at  Paris  ('  P.')  and  Rome,  in  the  Angelica 
Convent,  C.  i.  5  ('  R.') 

20.  The  exposition  of  E,.  Mosheh  ben  Nahman  of  Gerona^ 
(about  1 250-1 270),  according  to  MSS.  at  Oxford,  Mich.  500 
('M.'),  0pp.  Add.  quo.  Ill  ('0.'),  at  Vienna  ('V.')y,  and  two  in 
the  possession  of  Herr  S.  J.  Halberstam  of  Bielitz  ('  H.^  H.^'), 
who  kindly  transcribed  them  for  me.  This  exposition  has  been 
already  published  by  Dr.  Steinschneider  at  the  end  of  his  edition 
of  the  Wikkuah  or  Refutation  of  Nahmauides  (Bei'lin,  i860),  as 
he  states  himself,  from  the  manuscript  Mich.  289  (now  500), 
though  the  text  apj)ears  to  me  to  be  derived  from  some  dif- 
ferent source.  An  extract  from  the  Wikkuah  is  annexed,  from 
the  MS.  '  O.,'  and  the  text  as  edited  by  Steinschneider  ('St.') 

2 1 .  From  the  Commentary  of  Mar  Aliaron  ben  Yoseph,  the 
Qaraite,  the  Elder,  author  of  the  Mibhhar  on  the  Pentateuch. 
The  extract  is  taken  from  the  Mibhhar  Tsharim,  edited  by  the  late 
Abraham  Firkowitsch  (Eupatoria,  1836).  A  short  addition  from 
MSS.  at  St.  Petersburg  will  be  found  on  p.  400  (English,  p.  571). 

22.  A  section  from  the  elder  Nizzahon"^,  as  printed  by  Wagen- 
seil  'n\  his  Tela  Ignea  Satanae  (Altorf,  1681),  p.  105. 

23.  Chapter  8,  section  19  of  the  Touchstone  of  E,.  Shem  Tob 
ben  Yizhaq  ben  Shaprut,  of  Toledo,  which  was  finished  in  the 
month  lyar,  1385,  in  Tarazona.  This  treatise  is  usually  sub- 
divided into  twelve  chapters,  being  based  upon  the  Wars  of  tlie 
Lord  (see  No.  14),  which  the  author  tells  us  in  his  Preface  was 
assigned  by  some  to  Yoseph  Qamhi.  Three  MSS.  have  been 
collated  for  this,  viz.  Mich,  113,  Mich.  137  (from  which  I  have 
extracted  the  Reply  to  Alphonso,  p.  97),  and  Opj).  Add.  quo.  72. 

^  See  Gratz,  vii.  41  flF. 

y  For  a  collation  of  which  I  am  indebted  to  the  kindness  of  Dr.  Gtidemann, 
Rabbi  in  that  city. 

"  So  called  in  distinction  from  the  later  Nizzahon  (  =  ' Conquest')  of 
R.  Lipmann  (No.  28). 


X  PREFACE. 

I  have  also  found  an  abridgment  of  tlie  treatise  by  Abraham 
Eliyyah  Kohen  in  the  MS.,  0pp.  Add.  quo.  iii,  fol.  68^,  where 
the  writer  states  that  he  made  an  abstract  of  the  work  composed 
by  Shem  Tob  against  the  heretics,  and  in  particular  against 
certain  of  the  Christians,  and  known  under  the  name  of  the 
Touchstone,  adding  that  a  treatise  bearing  the  same  name  had 
already  been  written  previously  upon  different  subjects.  And 
on  fol.  70b  he  informs  us  that  the  Cardinal  of  Aragon%  who  was 
elected  Pope  in  the  year  13 13,  had  a  public  controversy  with 
the  author.  It  has  not  been  thought  necessary  to  reprint  this 
abridgment. 

24  A.  The  Commentary  of  R.  Mosheh  Kohen  Tbn  Crispin  of 
Cordova,  afterwards  of  Toledo,  also  at  one  period  of  his  life  a 
resident  at  Valencia,  where  he  composed  an  answer  to  a  casuis- 
tical question.  He  also  wrote  notes  upon  the  Gate  of  Heaven 
by  R.  Yizhaq  Israeli.  It  is  possible  that  these  were  his  earliest 
work. 

24  B.  The  forty-second  chapter  of  the  Aid  to  Faith  of  R. 
Mosheh  ha-Kohen  of  Otor-Sillas  [Torresillas]  in  the  kingdom 
of  Leon,  and  afterwards  of  Avila,  composed  in  the  year  1375, 
after  a  disputation  held  by  him  with  two  of  his  compatriots  who 
had  deserted  Judaism,  and  who  by  permission  of  the  king 
assembled  the  Jews  together  for  purposes  of  controversy.  He 
cites  the  Wars  of  the  Lord,  though  without  mentioning  the 
author's  name,  and  the  Moreh  Zedeq  of  Abner  b.  His  own  book 
he  dedicates  to  the  celebrated  Don  David  'IbnYa'ishc  of  Toledo. 
I  at  first  was  of  opinion  that  the  two  recensions  A  and  B  were 
by  the  same  hand,  and  classified  them  accordingly  under  one 
head;  but  I  now  feel  hesitation  upon  this  point,  though  the 
question  cannot  yet  be  regarded  as  definitely  settled.     Three 

■^  I.  e.  Petro  de  Luna :  sec  the  Wihhuah  in  the  Paris  MS.,  No.  831.  4. 

^  I.  e.  Alfonso  Burgensis  de  Valladolid,  Gr.atz,  viii.  337. 

"=  Of  the  same  family  as,  if  not  identical  with,  the  Ya'ish  who,  in  conjunc- 
tion with  R.  fllosheh  Abodcl,  pleaded  the  cause  of  the  Jews  before  the  king 
(Gratz,  iJbkl.  p.  341). 


PllEPACE.  XI 

MSS.  have  been  collated,  viz.  Bodl.  599  ('  B.'),  Micb.  147  ('M.'), 
and  0pp.  Add.  quo.  74  ('0.') 

25.  The  Commentary  of  En<l  Sb'lomoh  Astruc  of  Barcelona 
(perhaps  son  of  Nastruc  Sb'lomoh,  the  son  of  R.  Sb'lomoh  ben 
Addereth,  mentioned  in  the  Bodleian  MS.  Reggio  32,  fol.  253), 
from  an  Oxford  MS.,  Mich.  500,  which  contains  likewise  his 
commentary  on  Ps.  cxxxix.  The  same  writer  composed  also  a 
commentary  on  the  Law,  called  minn  ^KHID  (which  may  be 
found  in  the  MS.,  Mich.  302),  in  which  he  states  (fol.  177^)  that 
he  had  seen  the  plague  of  locusts  in  the  year  1359.  A  com- 
mentary of  his  upon  Esther  is  in  the  possession  of  my  friend, 
Herr  Halberstam. 

26.  The  Commentary  of  Maestro  Izaq  Eli,  the  Spaniard,  from 
MS.  59  of  the  Breslau  Seminaiy.  The  author,  as  appears  from 
the  dedicatoi-y  words  of  some  verses  addressed  to  him  by  the 
poet  R.  Sb'lomoh  Bonfed,  was  an  old  man  in  the  j'car  1359. 

27.  The  Persian  version,  dating  from  about  1400,  written  in 
Hebrew  characters  in  the  Paris  MS.  97.  Tliis  contains  nothing 
new,  being  merely  a  literal  translation :  bis  renderings  of  the  crucial 
expressions  of  the  original  will  be  found  in  the  note  below  «. 

28.  Section  236  of  the  Nizzahon  of  R.  Lipmann  of  Miihl- 
hausen,  composed  about  1430,  according  to  the  Niirnberg 
edition  f  (1644)  and  a  Michaelis  MS. 

29.  From  the  Commentary  upon  Isaiah  by  Don  Yizhaq  Abar- 
banel,  according  to  the  printed  editions.  So  far  as  I  am  aware, 
the  only  MS.  of  this  commentary  extant  is  in  the  Library  of  the 
Escurial " ;  but  the  recent  war  in  Spain  has  prevented  my  being 
able  to  collate  it  with  the  printed  text,  which  is  the  more  to  be 


"1  En,  in  the  language  of  Provence  and  Catalan,  an  abbreviation  for 
Mosscn  (i.  e. '  Monsieur'). 

®  nay,  simply  'my  servant;'  T\v,  'will  make  to  speak.' 

f  Steinschneider,  Catal.  Bodl.  col.  1410.  It  is  contained  also  in  the 
Oxford  MS.,  Opp.  593.  Compare  Ginsburg,  Commentary  on  Ecclesiades 
(London,  1861),  p.  64. 

s  Archives  des  missions  scientijiqucs  (Paris,  1868),  p.  428. 


Xll  PREFACE. 

regretted  as  the  lattei-  is  in  many  places  corrupt.  I  may  men- 
tion that  an  abridgment  of  Abai-banel's  commentary  on  this 
Parashah  exists  in  the  work  called  the  Glory  of  God,  in  the 
Library  of  the  Talmudical  School  at  Amsterdam  :  the  MS.  was 
finished  at  Venice  on  the  first  day  of  Shebat,  1637.  At  the 
end  of  the  preface  there  is  a  statement  to  the  efiect  that  there 
being  no  title  to  the  work,  E.  Abraham,  son  of  E,.  Mattathyah  of 
Patras,  when  writing  a  preface  to  it,  called  it  the  Glory  of  God  1'. 

30.  The  Commentary  of  R.  David  de  Rocca  Martino,  the 
author  of  the  DIN  ni2T,  in  the  Oxford  MS.,  Reggio  21.  The 
learned  Senior  Sachs,  in  his  preface  to  this  work,  remarks  that 
Abarbanel  copied  Martino  without  naming  him ;  but  1  should 
myself  be  rather  of  opinion  that  Martino  abbreviated  Abarbanel. 
Certainly,  according  to  a  MS.  said  to  have  been  inspected  by  the 
late  Dr.  Carmoly  at  Amsterdam,  David  was  in  Provence  in  the 
year  1360;  and  if  this  be  the  fact,  I  must  withdraw  my 
opinion ;  but  both  M.  Roest  and  myself  have  sought  in  vain  to 
discover  the  manuscript  in  question  i. 

31.  The  Commentary  of  R.  Sa'adyah  'Ibn  Danan  of  Grenada 
(c.  1 500),  according  to  the  Oxford  MSS.,  Bodl.108  and  Mich.  284J. 

32.  The  Mikhlol  Yophi^  of  R.  Sh'lomoh  ben  Melekh  of  Fez 
(about  1500). 

•*  For  transcripts  of  the  preface  and  of  the  abridgment  of  the  commentary 
upon  this  chapter  (which,  however,  it  would  evidently  have  been  superfluous 
to  reproduce  here),  my  best  thanks  are  due  to  M.  Roest,  the  learned  com- 
piler of  the  Catalogue  to  Rosenthal's  Library,  and  to  R.  Yosepli  Kohen 
Zedeq.  There  is  another  MS.  of  the  same  abridgment  in  the  Library  at 
Parma,  No.  75  (see  De  Rossi's  Catalogue,  No.  75),  written  likewise  at  Venice, 
in  1690.  And  there  is  an  abridgment  of  the  abridgment  in  the  Oxford  MSS,, 
Mich.  10,  §  5,  and  Bodl.  88,  §  6. 

'  See  Berliner's  Magazin  fur  jiidische  Geschichte  und  Liieratur,  1875, 
No.  35.  With  due  deference  to  the  opinion  of  Dr.  Steinschneider,  as  ex- 
pressed in  his  preface  to  the  CD:  'blOJn  of  R.  Hillel  (Lyck,  1875,  p.  23),  it 
is  impossible  to  agree  with  him  in  believing  that  Abarbanel  lived  subsequently 
to  David  de  Rocca  Martino,  at  least  until  he  brings  forward  more  cogent 
proofs  than  he  has  done  hitherto. 

J  On  'Ibn  Danan  and  his  writings, see  furtherSteinschn.J?odZ.Catei.  p.  2155. 

■<  Ginsburg,  loc.  cit.  p.  66. 


PUEFACE.  Xni 

33.  From  the  Refutation  of  R.  Abraham  Farissol  ben  Morde- 
khai  of  Avignon  (born  1451),  who  resided  at  Ferrara  and  com- 
posed this  work  in  1503^  In  his  preface  he  states  that  at  the 
request  of  Messer  Ercoli,  Duke  of  Feirara,  and  of  his  wife  and 
brothers,  he  was  prevailed  upon  to  dispute  in  their  presence 
with  two  of  the  most  celebrated  men  of  that  day,  Brother  Ludo- 
vicus  of  Valencia,  of  the  Order  of  the  Dominicans,  and  Brother 
Malpita,  of  the  Minors.  The  disputation  was  renewed  upon 
several  occasions,  and  the  course  which  the  discussion  took  is 
recounted  in  his  book,  which  at  the  urgent  entreaty  of  Barto- 
lomeo  Gogo  and  other  learned  men  he  was  induced  to  write,  in 
oi'der  that  they  might  have  an  opportunity  of  weighing  more 
carefully  the  arguments  adduced,  and  of  judging  whether  it 
would  be  possible  to  frame  a  reply  to  them.  It  was  composed 
first  in  Hebrew,  and  afterwards  translated  by  the  author  into 
Italian.  Finding  two  different  recensions  of  it,  I  resolved  to 
publish  both.  That  marked  A  is  from  the  MS.  Mich.  302,  §  52, 
where  it  is  entitled  the  Shield  of  Abraham,  some  lacunae  in  it 
being  supplied  from  Mich.  549,  §  37,  entitled  the  Controversy 
of  Faith.  The  other  recension,  marked  B,  is  from  the  MS. 
Mich.  284,  §  36,  entitled  Controversy  of  Faith,  and  from  Mich. 
319,  §  44,  called  the  SJneld  of  Abraham. 

34.  From  the  Vatican  MS.,  No.  509,  fol.  64. 

35.  From  the  Commentary  on  Isaiah  by  R.  Meir  Aramah 
(c.  1540),  entitled  the  Urim  and  Thummim,  according  to  the 
printed  text  and  a  MS.  at  Paris. 

36.  Chapter  22  of  the  Buhvark  of  Truth  of  Mar  Yizhaq  bar 
Abraham  Troki,  the  Qaraite  (1593),  according  to  the  printed 
editions  and  MSS.™ 

37.  From  the  niNni!f  niK^Di^,  an  exposition  of  the  Prophets 


1    Gratz,  ix.  p.  53. 

™  This  is  translated  into  Spanish  and  Italian  in  a  Parma  MS.  :   see  De 
Rossi,  BiiUotheca  Judaica  Antichristiana,  p.  19. 
"  Exod.  xxxviii.  8. 


XIV  PREFACE. 

by  R.  Mosheh  ben  R.  Haj'yim  Al-Sheikh,  of  Saphed,  according  to 
the  printed  text. 

38.  From  the  Armotiry  of  Solomon,  a  Commentary  on  Isaiah 
by  R.  Sh'lomoh  ben  R.  Yizhaq,  the  Levite,  of  Salonica  (1600), 
according  to  the  printed  text. 

39.  Chapter  4 1  of  the  Toiver  of  the  House  of  God  o,  a  polemical 
work  of  R.  Abraham,  the  Proselyte,  of  Cordova  (c,  1600),  trans- 
lated from  Spanish  into  Hebrew  by  R.  Mordekhai  Luzzatto  p. 
This  is  taken  from  an  Oxford  MS.,  Mich.  356,  the  text  having 
been  collated  by  Dr.  Marco  Mortara  with  that  of  a  MS.  in  the 
Rabbinical  School  at  Mantua :  the  original  will  be  found  among 
the  Spanish  texts  at  the  end  of  the  volume. 

40.  From  the  Jewel  of  Gold,  a  Commentary  on  Isaiah  by 
R.  Sh'muel  bar  Abraham  LaSado,  of  Aleppo^  (middle  of  seven- 
teenth century),  according  to  the  printed  editions.  For  the 
sake  of  brevity,  the  expositions  of  Rashi,  'Ibn  'Ezra,  David 
Qamhi,  and  Abarbanel,  which  are  cited  by  the  author  almost 
word  for  word,  have  been  omitted. 

41.  From  the  Qaraite  Tataric  version  of  the  Old  Testament, 
made  for  the  use  of  Jews  resident  in  a  district  of  the  Crimea, 
and  dating  probably  from  about  1640,  according  to  the  edition 
of  Eupatoria,  1840.  The  translation  is  a  literal  one,  and  is 
merely  given  here  for  the  sake  of  completeness  J".  Since  the 
text  is  difficult  to  read  in  Hebrew  characters,  e^'en  with  the 
addition  of  points,  I  have,  with  the  assistance  of  M.  Pavet  de 
Courteille,  member  of  the  French  Institute,  and  of  my  friend 
M.  Joseph  Halevi,  transcribed  it  into  Turkish  characters. 

42.  From  the  \2\h  ''"lUn,  a  short  exposition  of  the  Prophets 
and  Hagiogi-apha  by  R.  Abraham  ben  R.  Y'hudah,  the  Hazan 
(about  1600),  according  to  the  printed  text. 

°  Comp.  Judg.  ix.  46. 

P  De  Rossi,  Bibliolhcca  Judaica  Antichrist iana,  p.  7. 
<i  Steinschneider,  Catal.  Bodl.  col.  2433. 

»■  nay,  'my  servant;'  rtr,  'will  make  to  speak  ;'  'y^  C'TDn  DN,  'if  thou 
givest  thy  soul  in  place  of  a  trespass-offering.' 


PREFACE.  XV 

43.  From  the  Hind  sent  forth,  a  Commentary  on  the  Pro- 
phets and  Hagiographa  by  R..  Naphtali  (Ilirsch)  ben  R.  Asher 
Altschuler,  according  to  the  printed  text. 

44.  From  the  Reformation  of  the  World,  a  Commentary  upon 
Isaiali  by  R.  Sh'lomoh  ben  R.  Yizhaq  de  Marini,  Rabbi  in  Padua 
(end  of  seventeenth  century),  according  to  the  printed  text. 

45.  Part  iii,  chapter  1 9  of  the  Furnace  of  the  Faiths,  a  con- 
troversial treatise  by  R.  Yizhaq  Lopez  of  Aleppo,  according  to 
the  printed  copy.  The  author  does  little  more  than  borrow  from 
the  Wars  of  the  Lord  (No.  14)  and  the  Touchstone  (No.  23) ;  the 
extract  has,  however,  been  inserted  for  the  sake  of  completeness, 

46.  Chapter  12  of  the  ""l^n  Dt^N",  also  a  polemical  treatise,  by 
E,.  Yoshua'  Segre,  composed  in  the  year  1791,  when  the  author 
was  twenty-three  years  old.  This  I  transcribed  from  a  Parma 
MS.,  No.  127 1 ;  and  the  text  has  been  further  collated  with  the 
original  MS.  by  the  Abbate  Perreau,  sub-librarian  at  Parma. 
After  the  sheets  had  passed  through  the  press,  I  found  the  work 
mentioned  in  Senior  Sachs'  catalogue  of  MSS.  belonging  to 
Baron  Giinzburg  of  Paris  (No.  267), — a  library  which  contains 
also  several  other  works  by  the  same  author. 

47.  The  Stronghold  of  David  and  of  Zion,  a  Commentary  on 
the  Old  Testament  by  R.  Y'hiel  ben  R.  David  Altschuler,  accord- 
ing to  the  printed  editions.  Since  the  author  (as  he  tells  us 
himself  in  his  preface  to  the  First  Prophets)  professes  only  to 
record  what  he  had  received  from  his  father,  I  have  prefixed  the 
name  of  the  latter  to  the  extract. 

A  series  of  extracts  relating  to  Isaiah  liii,  from  larger  works 
upon  different  subjects : — 

a.  From  the  Arabic  Lexicon  of  Mar  David  ben  Abraham,  the 
Qaraite,  a  contemporary  of  Sa'adyah  Ga'on*,  according  to  an 
Oxford  MS.,  0pp.  Add.  fol.  25,  s.v.  Q^S*.  h.  From  the  BooJc  of 
Roots  of  R.  Yonah  Abulwalid  :  see  the  Oxford  edition,  p.  117. 

s  I.e.  properly,  the  Suspended  Trespass-offering  (see  p.  307)  ;  but  the  author 
means  his  title  to  be  understood  as  signifying  the  Trespass  of  the  Crucified  one. 
'  Idckute  Qadmoniot,  p.  20S. 


XVI  PREFACE. 

c.  From  the  Letter  to  the  South  [Yemen]  of  R.  Moses  Maimo- 
nides,  as  given  in  the  Qohez.  d.  From  the  niVIO  non?D,  a  polemi- 
cal work  composed  by  a  scholar  of  Narbonne  (probably  R.  Me'ir 
bar  Shim' on)  in  the  year  1240,  and  dedicated  to  R.  Meshullam 
bar  Moshehu.  Two  MSS.  have  been  made  use  of  for  this,  one  at 
Parma  ('  P.'),  and,  for  the  first  part,  one  in  the  Rabbinical  School  of 
Breslau  ('  B.'),  in  the  Liqqidim  of  R.  !Mosheh  of  Salerno,  see 
below  (/).  e.  Chapter  5  of  the  miDN  prn»  of  R.  Mord'khai  ben 
yiiosaphah,  of  Provence,  >vTitten  by  him  in  answer  to  the  convert 
Paulus  Christianas  in  1 2  7  4  v.  This  I  have  taken  from  the  Vatican 
MS.  271,  with  which  the  printed  text  has  also  been  collated  for 
me  by  R.  Mordekhai  Angelo  di  Capua.  /.  From  the  Objections 
collected  together  and  added  to  by  R.  Mosheh  ben  Sh'lomoh  of 
Salerno  (about  1240^),  according  to  a  Breslau  MS.,  No.  59. 
g.  From  the  'Iqqarim  of  Yoseph  Albo  (1420),  part  iv,  chap.  13. 
h.  A  poem  by  R.  Israel  (perhaps  R.  Israel  Nagara,  of  Damascus, 
who  lived  about  1550),  from  the  Oxford  MSS.,  M.  310  and 
M.  189.  i.  From  the  Beginning  of  Wisdom,  by  R.  Eliyyah  de 
Vidas  (1575),  according  to  the  Venice  edition  of  1593.  j.  From 
the  Shield  and  Spear  of  R.  Hayyim  'Ibn  Musa,  of  ]Magi-eb,  also 
from  the  Breslau  MS.  59.  For  the  transcription  of  the  three 
last-named  extracts  I  am  indebted  to  Dr.  Freudenthal,  and  the 
transcript  has  also  been  again  collated  with  the  original  MSS. 
by  Dr.  David  Kaufmann.  k.  A  chapter  of  an  anonymous  Wars 
of  the  Lord,  from  a  MS.  in  the  Talmudical  School  at  Amsterdam  : 
in  the  course  of  it,  mention  is  made  of  a  commentary  on  the 
Old  Testament  by  R.  Ya'qob  ben  R'uben.  This  was  tran- 
scribed and  collated  for  me  by  the  same  scholars  who  kindly 
lent  me  their  assistance  for  No.  29.  I.  From  the  Paris  MS., 
No.  17.      m.    From  a  Parma  MS.,  No.  1090.      n.  From   the 

n  Comp.  Archives  des  missions,  1872,  p.  556,  and  Gross  in  Gratz's  Monat- 
schrift,  1875,  p.  190. 

*  Steinschneider  in  the  Mazkir,  xvi.  p.  42.  The  Vatican  MS.  is  often  very 
difficult  to  read,  and  in  many  places  has  suflFered  obliteration. 

w  Mazkir,  xv.  p.  86. 


PREFACE.  XVll 

Book  of  the  Pious,  Bologna,  1538,  No.  56  (in  other  texts,  No. 
31).  0.  From  the  Midrash  Konen,  following  the  old  printed 
text,  and  Jellinek's  Beth  ham- Midrash,  ii.  p.  29.  p.  From  the 
Ten  Discourses  of  R.  M'nahera  'Azaryah  of  Fano  (about  1640), 
n.  7  of  the  part  headed  pT  "\"lpn.  q.  Chapter  19  of  the  Gilgulim 
('  transmigrations')  of  K.  Ha}^im  Vital,  r.  From  the  Midrash 
Nelami,  according  to  the  Yalqut  Ruheni  ("Wilhermsdorf,  1681). 
s.  From  the  later  Yalqut,  the  portion  styled  Souls,  t.  From 
a  controversial  work  contained  in  a  Hamburg  MS.,  according 
to  UfFenbach's  Catalogiie,  fol.  146.  u.  From  the  Prayers  for 
the  First  Day  of  the  Passover,  according  to  the  order  observed  by 
the  German  Jews.  v.  From  the  Liqqutim,  \vi-itten  in  Genuan, 
and  printed  at  Amsterdam  in  1699,  p.  5^.  w.  From  the  Order 
of  Prayer  for  the  Day  of  Atonement,  likewise  according  to  the 
German  Jews  (Hebrew  text,  p.  394).  x.  From  the  Commentary 
on  the  Pentateuch  (Deut.  xxxiv,  10)  by  Levi  ben  Gershom  (four- 
teenth century),  y.  From  the  i'XnB'''  HVJ  of  K.  Y'hudah  ben 
B'zal'el  of  Pi-ague  (sixteenth  century). 

At  this  point  it  was  originally  my  intention  to  bring  the 
catena  to  an  end ;  but  after  conferring  with  Dr.  Pusey,  I  deter- 
mined to  add  the  following : — 

48.  From  the  exposition  of  the  entire  Old  Testament,  called 
the  Korem,  by  Herz  Homberg  (Wien,  1818). 

49.  A  Commentary  on  Isaiah  liii,  by  JR.  Ya'qob  Yoseph 
Mord'khai  Hayyim  Passani,  chief  Rabbi  at  Rome  from  1852  to 
1867.  A  transcript  was  made  from  a  JIS.  belonging  to  the 
synagogue  at  Rome,  by  Signer  Angelo  di  Capua,  and  sent  to  me 
by  the  kindness  of  Dr.  Berliner. 

50.  From  the  Commentary  on  Isaiah  by  Samuel  David  Luz- 
zatto  (Padua,  1867). 

Before  passing  to  the  Spanish  texts,  I  may  indicate  briefly 
certain  other  commentaries  which,  although  composed  by  Jewish 
hands,  have  yet  for  various  reasons  been  omitted.     Some  are 

*  This  extract  is  not  from  the  Fuente  Claro,  as  Steinschneider  strangely 
thinks,  Catal.  Bodl.  col.  2798. 

b 


XVlll  PREFACE. 

SO  penetrated  with  ideas  of  a  cabbalistic  or  haggadic  nature 
as  to  be  scarcely  intelligible ;  as,  for  example,  the  D3n  TT\)T\ 
(pp.  16-19)  of  R.  Hayj'im  Kohen,  the  Dpy  n"l33DO  of  R.  Yoseph 
Pardo,  the  n'^B'  (Y'shayah  Hurwiz)  and  "i^DH  pDy  of  R,  Naphtali 
Herz  Bachi-ach  :  others,  such  as  those  by  the  pupils  of  R.  Mosheh 
of  Dessau  (Mendelssohn)  and  R.Yirm'yah  Heinemann,  are  merely 
glossaries,  or  not  original  :  a  third  class,  again,  such  as  that  by 
R.  Me'ir  (Liebusch)  Malbim,  are  wholly  of  a  philosophical 
character,  or  resemble  the  7N1B'''  IT'iriN  of  the  late  Gottlieb 
Schwartz,  which,  in  my  opinion,  does  violence  to  the  Hebrew 
idiom.  Lastly,  commentaries  such  as  those  of  S.  Cahen,  Herx- 
heimer,  or  Philippson,  being  written  in  the  vulgar  tongue,  and 
in  the  hands  of  every  one  interested  in  the  literature  of  the  Old 
Testament,  it  was  evidently  unnecessary  to  reprint. 

51.  Chapter  4  of  the  Fuente  Claro  (place  and  date  of  publica- 
tion unknown),  the  only  known  copy  of  which,  now  at  Parma  v,  is 
exceedingly  corrupt,  not  merely  through  the  confusion  of  similar 
letters  (such  as  3,  3,  and  "1 ;  n  and  n ;  "I,  T,  and  "i ;  13  and  p),  but 
also  from  the  interchange  of  Spanish  and  Italian  words,  and 
the  presence  of  frequent  lacunae.  These  corruptions  were  so 
numerous,  that  it  was  impossible  to  indicate  all  the  corrections 
that  were  needed  in  order  to  make  the  text  readable,  except  in 
cases  where  they  consisted  merely  in  the  filling  up  of  the  lacunae 
[  ].  It  seems  probable  that  the  work  was  written  originally 
in  Hebrew.  In  decypbering  this  text  I  must  acknowledge  the 
assistance  I  have  derived  from  my  friend  M.  Joseph  Halevy  of 
Paris. 

In  the  Imperial  Library  at  St.  Petersburg  (which  I  was 
recently  commissioned  by  the  University  of  Oxford  to  visit,  for 
the  purpose  of  reporting  upon  the  second  collection  of  Hebrew- 
Arabic  MSS.  acquired  from  the  late  M.  Firkowitzsch),  I  was 
fortunate  enough  to  meet  with  two  commentaries  of  the  gi'eatest 
value,  viz. : — 

52.  The  Commentary  of  R.  Y'hudah  ben  Bil'ani  (c.  1080)  on 

y  De  Rossi,  Bihliotheca  Judaiea  Antiehristiana,  p.  33. 


PREFACE.  XIX 

the  Prophets.  It  is  probable  that  Ben  Bil'am's  commentary 
embraced  the  Avholc  of  the  Old  Testament ;  for  part  of  that  on 
Numbers  and  Deuteronomy  exists  in  the  Bodleian  Librarj^  and 
I  have  found  besides  a  leaf  of  his  commentary  on  the  Psalms  in 
the  second  Petei-sburg  collection  (No.  6 1 9),  and  some  from  those 
on  Job  and  Daniel  (all  written  in  Arabic)  in  the  Vatican  Library, 
No.  429. 

53.  The  Commentary  of  R.  Tanhum  ben  Yoseph,  of  Jeni- 
salem  (thirteenth  century).  I  must  here  acknowledge  specially 
my  obligations  to  the  Vice-Director  of  the  Library,  M.  A.  Th. 
Bitschkow,.  who  most  courteously  permitted  me  the  freest 
access  to  the  MSS.,  and  also  to  my  friend  Dr.  Harkavy. 

54.  A.  From  the  Khozari  of  R.  Y'hudah  hal-Levi  (about 
1 1 40).  B.  The  Commentary  of  R.  Sh'lomoh  ben  M'nahem, 
also  known  as  Frat  Maimon,  and  contained  in  his  work,  the 
Testimony  to  Israel,  and  cited  at  length  in  their  commentaries 
on  the  Khozari,  by  his  two  pupils  R.  N'thanel  ben  N'hemyah 
Kaspi  (MS.  Mich.  Add.  11,  fol.  74)  and  R.  Sh'lomoh  ben  Y'hudah 
(called  also  Salmon  Vivas  of  Lunel),  0pp.  Add.  quo.  114,  fol.  55. 
The  composition  of  the  latter  commentary  was  begun  in  the  year 
[5i]84  =  i424,  when  the  author  was  thirteen  years  old 2. 

55.  From  the  Commentary  on  the  Prophets  by  R.  Gershom 
ben  Nathan,  written  in  1594  :  the  MS.  is  in  the  University 
Library  at  Upsala. 

Next  follow  three  Spanish  texts  written  in  Roman  characters, 
and  the  Latin  of  ben  Amram. 

A.  Chapter  41,  in  the  original  (see  No.  39),  from  the  Fortaleza 
del  Judaismo  y  Confusion  del  estrano  of  R.  Abraham,  the  Pros- 
elyte *!,  of  Cordova,  according  to  an  Oxford  MS.^  This  treatise 
is  also  to  be  found  in  Baron  GUnzburg's  Library,  No.  467. 

^  See  Archives  des  missions,  etc.,  1873,  p.  573. 

»  Otherwise  called  Lorenzo  Escudero,  according  to  Dr.  Kayserling,  Sephar- 
dim,  p.  255. 

*>  Catal.  Mortara,  No.  167  ;  Catal.  Coxe,  Canon.  Miscell.,  No.  544,  who  says 
that,  to  judge  from  the  hand,  the  MS.  must  belong  to  the  sixteenth  century. 

b  2 


XX  PREFACE. 

B.  The  23r(l  'Question'  on  Isaiah  from  the  Conciliador  of 
R.  M'nasseli  ben  Israel  (a])out  1640),  according  to  the  Amster- 
dam edition  of  1650,  but  with  occasional  corrections,  the  text 
as  there  given  being  disfigured  by  numerous  errata. 

C.  Chapters  24-28  from  the  Prevenciones  divinas  contra  la 
vana  Idolatria  de  /«9  (jentes  of  the  physician  Orobio  de  Castro, 
one  of  the  persecuted  Spaniards  who,  in  order  to  be  able  to  profess 
Judaism  openly,  migrated  about  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury c  to  Amstei'dam,  whei'e  he  composed  this  work  in  support 
of  the  Jewish  faith.  For  the  text  I  have  followed  an  Oxford  MS., 
0pp.  Add.  fol.  29,  and  another  which  came  into  my  hands  from 
M.  Montezinos  in  Amsterdam.  For  making  the  necessary  cor- 
rections in  the  MS.,  previous  to  publication,  I  called  in  the 
assistance  of  Seiior  Lucena,  Teacher  of  Spanish  in  this  Univer- 
sity. There  is  an  abridgment  of  this  treatise  in  Portuguese '', 
which  I  had  acquired  from  M.  Montezinos,  and  from  which 
the  French  translation  was  made  by  Henriquez  t' ;  but  as  Portu- 
guese is  less  generally  known  than  French,  it  was  deemed 
sufficient  to  reprint  the  last  chapter  from  the  French  trans- 
lation, according  to  the  first  edition. 

D.  Sections  613-647,  and  840,  841,  fi'om  the  Gate  of  Truth, 
by  R.  Ya'qob  ben  'Amram,  written  in  the  year  1634.  The 
Hebrew  original  of  this  is  unfortunately  lost,  and  it  exists  only 
in  a  Latin  translation,  in  a  MS.  belonging  to  Balliol  College, 
Oxford,  No.  251.  On  the  first  j)age  are  the  words:  'Porta 
veritatis  sive  compendiaria  via  ad  beatitudincm,  autoi'C  Jacob 
ben  Amram  Judaeo ;   haec  porta  Domini,  justi  intrabunt  per 


"  See  Gratz,  x.  p.  202. 

^  Its  title  is,  Explica^ao  paraphrastica  sohre  o  cap.  53  de  profcta  Isaias 
.....  feito  jjor  hum  coriozo  da  nacao  helrca  em  Amstenlam  em  0  mez  de 
Tisry  anno  5435.     See  the  Cardozo  Catalogue,  Amsterdam,  1870,  No.  1376. 

"  It  has  been  printed  twice:  once  in  London,  1770,  under  the  title  Inrad 
vevr/e,  on  exposition  naturelle  des  jiropMtiex  h'hrairjues  que  les  chreliens 
applifjuent  a  lenr  pr^tendu  Messie ;  and  in  Paris,  1846. 


PREFACE.  XXI 

earn  (Ps.  117,  v.  20).  Auno  de  orbe  condito,  5394*.'  Latin  is 
still  so  far  from  being  in  England  a  dead  or  unknown  language 
that  it  has  been  deemed  unnecessary  to  have  this  Commentary 
translated ;  the  text  itself  has,  however,  for  convenience,  been 
reprinted  in  the  English  volume. 

There  still  remain  four  other  treatises  to  be  alluded  to. 
a.  Tratado  hecho  for  doctor  \Elie\  Montealto  sobre  el  capitulo 
53  de  Isahias,  which  likewise  is  in  my  possessions:  this  has 
been  omitted,  because  it  is  merely  a  discussion  on  the  sin  of 
oar  first  parents,  and  not  an  exposition  of  the  entire  chapter. 
h.  Declaragao  do  Cap.  53  de  lesaya,  by  Yizhaq  Montealto  I': 
this  I  was  unable  to  see,  in  consequence  of  the  jealousy  of  its 
possessor ;  it  may  possibly  be  a  Portuguese  version  of  one  of 
the  Spanish  chapters  mentioned  above,  c.  The  npi73  nn^oi,  a 
commentary  on  Isaiah,  by  R.  Hillel  ben  Ya'qob  ha-Kohen  (about 
1500?);   but  this,  as  Dr.  Perles  has  pointed  outJ — and  through 


'  The  following  curious  note  is  inscribed  on  the  cover :  — 

An  Advertisement. 
This  manuscript  was  found  in  the  library  of  the  very  learned  Rd.  Cudworth, 
D.  D.  Thence  it  came  into  the  hands  of  my  learned  friend  P.  Allix,  D.D.,  of 
whom  I  bought  it.  I  have  heard  Dr.  Cudworth  say  that  he  bought  of  M.  ben 
Israel  a  AIS.  for  £10,  and  I  believe  this  to  be  the  same.  It  has  been  thought 
that  M.  ben  Israel  was  the  author  of  it.  I  cannot  affirm  that  to  be  so.  But 
I  can  affirm  that  I  take  it  to  be  the  greatest  effort  against  Christianity  that 
I  ever  saw  in  any  language  whatsoever.  And  for  that  reason  I  do  declare 
that  it  is  my  will  that  it  be  not  sold  to  any  private  person  for  any  price  how 
great  soever,  lest  by  that  means  it  should  be  printed,  without  an  answer, 
to  the  prejudice  of  Christianity.  I  rather  will  that  it  should  be  burnt,  or 
given  to  some  public  library  upon  sufficient  caution  that  it  be  never  lent  out 
of  the  said  library,  nor  transcribed,  but  locked  up  by  itself  and  consiUted 
upon  occasion,  in  tlie  library,  by  such  only  as  shall  be  allowed  by  the  owners 
of  the  said  library. 

May  g,  1700.  Richard  Bath  and  Wells. 

s  Cardozo  Catalogue,  No.  1398.  ^  Ibid.,  No.  1405. 

'   See  Steinschneider's  Catal.  of  the  Hebrew  MSS.  at  Munich,  Cod.  365. 

J    Griitz,  Monatsschrift,  1875,  p.  368. 


XXU  PREFACE. 

the  kindness  of  Eabbi  S.  Z.  Taussig,  the  editor  of  the  Q'hv  niJ, 
who  transcribed  for  me  the  portion  relating  to  this  Parashah,  I  am 
in  a  position  entirely  to  confirm  liis  judgment — is  nothing  more 
than  a  cento  from  the  earlier  commentators,  and  in  particular 
from  Rashi  and  David  Qamhi. 

It  is  possible  that  other  passages  relating  to  the  same  chapter 
may  have  escaped  my  notice ;  any  such  which  may  be  indicated  by 
the  kindness  of  critics,  I  shall  gladly  supply  should  aa  oppor- 
tunity present  itself. 

I  cannot  end  this  preface  without  acknowledging  the  obliga- 
tions I  am  under  to  my  two  friends,  M.  Senior  Sachs  of  Paris, 
and  Dr.  Schiller-Szinessy  of  Cambridge,  who  have  been  of  the 
greatest  assistance  to  me  while  the  Hebrew  sheets  were  passing 
through  the  press. 

The  above  is  a  complete  list  of  the  texts  wliich 
have  been  edited  in  volume  i.  For  the  translations 
occupying  the  present  volume,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  those  from  the  Spanish,  the  undersigned 
are  jointly  responsible  ;  for  the  revision  of  the 
translations  of  the  Spanish  commentaries,  they  are 
under  obligations  to  Mr.  H.  J.  Mathews,  of  Exeter 
College,  Oxford,  to  whom  they  desire  to  acknow- 
ledge their  best  thanks  for  the  aid  which  he  has 
rendered.  It  has  been  the  aim  of  the  translators 
to  render  the  various  texts  as  literally  as  was  con- 
sistent with  English  idiom,  while  at  the  same  time 
reducing  in  some  measure  the  diffuseness  and 
tautology  of  expression  not  unfrequently  charac- 
teristic of  the  original.  They  have  refrained  from 
offering  any  criticisms  or  comments  of  their  own, 


PREFACE.  XXUl 


even  in  cases  where  defective  philology  or  palpably 
false  exegesis  might  seem  to  invite  or  demand 
them.  And,  lastly,  they  feel  that  it  is  only  just 
to  record  their  grateful  recognition  of  the  assist- 
ance which,  through  the  whole  course  of  the  work, 
they  have  derived  from  the  diHgent  and  skilful  eye 
of  Mr.  Pembrey,  to  whom  the  high  character  borne 
by  the  Oriental  publications  of  the  Clarendon 
Press  has  been  for  many  years  due. 

A.  N.  S.  R.  D. 

Oxford,  December,  1876. 


PllEt'ACE. 


NOTE. 

Some  explanation  ought  perhaps  to  be  offered  of  tlic  orthogT'aphy  employed 
in  the  present  volume  in  the  transliteration  of  Hebrew  words.  The  current 
forms  of  many  of  the  more  familiar  Bible-names  are  derived,  as  is  well  known, 
through  the  Vulgate  from  those  adopted  by  the  Septuagint  translators,  and 
often  deviate  noticeably  from  such  as  would  be  in  strict  accordance  with  the 
present  vocalization  of  the  Hebrew  text.  It  was  felt  that  in  a  work  in  which 
unfamiliar  names  constantly  occurring  would  of  necessity  call  for  exact  trans- 
literation, an  attempt  might  be  made  to  remove  the  anomaly  of  conventional 
and  unconventional  forms  appearing  side  by  side,  and  at  the  same  time  to 
secure  throughout  forms  more  thoroughly  in  harmony  with  analogy  and  the 
structure  of  the  language.  When  thus  restored,  for  example,  the  proper  names 
Simeon,  Moses,  Solomon,  Isaac,  Jacob,  Samuel,  Elijah,  Isaiah,  Sennacherib, 
become,  respectively,  Shim'on,  Mosheh,  Sh'lomoh,  Yizhaq,  Ya'qob,  Sh'mu'el, 
'Eliyyah,  Y'sha'yah,  Sanherib.  In  the  citation  of  books  of  the  Bible,  how- 
ever, the  usual  orthography  has  been  adhered  to  ;  and  in  some  other  instances 
also  uniformity  has  not  been  completely  attained.  It  only  remains  to  explain 
that '  represents,  before  a  vowel,  the  soft  breathing ;  before  a  consonant,  the 
slight  e-sound  almost  necessarily  heard  between  two  consonants  occurring 
together  at  the  beginning  of  a  syllable  ;  that '  represents  the  rough  guttural 
'Ain ;  that  t,  z,  q  represent  respectively  Tet,  Zade,  and  Qoph  (as  distinguished 
from  Tau,  Zain,  and  Kaph)  :  lastly,  that  j  has  of  course  disappeared,  being 
replaced  by  y;  and  that  Cheth  {ch  as  in  'Loch'),  to  avoid  mispronunciation,  is 
represented  by  h. 


CONTENTS, 


Introduction  to  the  English  Translation 
Brief  Extracts,  in  wliich  the  Jewish  Commentators  write 
(i)  of  the  vicariousness  of  the  sufferings  mentioned  in 
this  section,  (2)  the  actual  death  of  the  sufferer  or 


sufferers,  (3)  of  his  or  their  continued  intercessi 

on     .     Ixvi 

Additional  Note 

.    Ixxv 

I. — The  Septuagint,  Aquila,  Symmachus,  and  Theoc 

otion        1 

II. — Targum  of  Jonathan 

.        5 

III.— Talmud  :— 

a.  Talmud  of  Jerusalem    .         .         .         . 

.        7 

h.   Talmud  of  Babylon 

7 

c.    Midrash  Rabbah  .         .         .         .         . 

.       9 

d.  Yalqut          ...... 

9 

e.    Siphre 

.     10 

/.    Tanhuma     ...... 

.     11 

g.   P'siqtha        ..... 

.     11 

IV.— Zohar 

.     12 

V. — R.  Sa'adyah  Gaon  ..... 

.      17- 

VI. — Japheth  ben  'Ali 

.      19 

VII. — Nistaroth  of  E.  Simeon  ben  Yohai 

.     32 

VIII. — R.  Moses  had-Darshan 

.     33- 

IX.— Leqah  Tobh  of  E.  Tobiah  ben  Eliezer     . 

.     36 

X. — E.  Solomon  Yizhaqi  (Eashi)    . 

.     37 

XL — E.  Joseph  Qara     ...... 

41,569 

XII. — E.  Abraham  ibn  'Ezra .... 

.     43 

XIII.— R.  David  Qamhi  (Kimchi)  . 

.     49 

CONTENTS. 


XIV. — R.  Jacob  ben  Reuben,  the  Rabbanite 

XV. — Jacob  ben  Reuben,  the  Qaraite 

XVI. — Anonymous  Arabic  Translation   . 

XVII. — R.  Eliezer  of  Beaugenci  ?    . 

XVIII.— R.  Joseph  ben  Natlian  (I'Official) 

XIX. — R.  Isaiah  ben  Mali  (the  Elder) 

XX. — R.  Moses  ben  Nahman  (Nachmanides) 

XXI. — Aaron  ben  Joseph  (the  Elder) 

XXII.— The  Older  Nizzahon  . 

XXIII.— R.  Shein  Tobh  ben  Shaprut      . 

XXIV.  A. — R.  Moses  Kohen  ibn  Crispin 

XXIV.  B.— R.  Moses  Kohen  . 

XXV. — En  Solomon  Astruc  . 

XXVI.— R.  Isaac  Elijah  (Ali  ?)  Kohen    . 

XXVII. — Anonymous  Persian  Translation 

XXVIIL— R.  Lipraann  (Yom  Tobh)  of  Muhlhauscn 

XXIX. — Don  Isaac  Abarbanel 

XXX. — R.  David  de  Rocca  Martino 

XXXI. — R.  Sa'adyah  ibn  Danan 

XXXII.— R.  Solomon  ben  Melekh . 

XXXIII. — R.  Abraham  Farissol     . 

XXXIV. — Anonymous   .... 

XXXV.— R.  Meir 'Aramah    . 

XXXVI.— Isaac  Troki   .... 

XXXVIL— R.  Moses  Al-Sheikh      . 

XXXVIII. — R.  Solomon  ben  Isaac  Levi . 

XXXIX. — R.  Abraham,  the  Proselyte 

XL. — R.  Samuel  Laflado 

XLI. — The  Qaraitic  Tatar ic  Translation  . 

XLII.-:-R.  Abraham  ben  Judah  Hazan    . 

XLIII. — R.  Naphtali  ben  Asher  Altschuler 

XLIV. — R.  Solomon  de  Marini 

XLV. — R.  Isaac  Lopez  .... 

XLVI. — R.  Joshua  Segre 

XLVII.— R.  David  Altschuler 


CONTENTS. 

XXVll 

Short  Passages  : — 

PAGE 

a.  R.  David  ben  Abraham,  the  Qaraitc     . 

.     373- 

h.  R.  Jonah  ibn  Janah    .... 

.     373 

c.    R.  Moses  ben  Maimon 

.     374  * 

d.  R.  Meir  ben  Simeon  . 

.     375 

e.    R.  Mordecai  ben  Joseph 

.     378  ^ 

/.    R.  Moses  of  Salerno  . 

.     381 

g.    R.  Joseph  Albo 

.     384  ;s 

h.    R.  Israel  (Nagarah?) 

.     385 

i.    R.  Elijah  de  Vidas     . 

.     385 

j.    R.  Hayyim  ibn  Musa 

.     386 

k.   Anonymous  Book  of  Controversy 

.     388 

I.    Anonymous  Marginal  Glosses 

.     391 

m.  Other  Glosses    ..... 

.     393 

n.  The  Book  of  the  Pious 

.     394 

0.    Midrash  Konen 

.     394 

p.   R.  Menahem  Azariah  of  Fano     . 

.     394 

q.    R.  Hayyim  Vital        .... 

.     395 

r.    Midrash  han-Ne'elam 

.     395 

s.    Yalqut  (the  later)       .... 

.     396 

t.    Anonymous  Book  of  Controversy 

.     397 

u.   Liturgical  Piece         .         .          .         .          . 

.     398 

V.    Anonymous  '  Buch  der  Verzeichnung' 

.     398 

w.  Liturgical  Piece          .... 

.     399 

X.   Levi  ben  Gershom     .         .         .         .         . 

.     568 

y.  E..  Liwa  ben  Bezaleel          .         .         .         . 

.     568 

XLVIII.— Herz  Homberg 

.     400 

XLIX. — R.  Joseph  Passani 

.     406 

L. — Samuel  David  Luzzatto 

.     412 

LI. — Anonymous  '  Fuente  Claro'    .         .         .         . 

.     429 

LII. — Judah  ben  Balaam        .         .         .         .         . 

.     550 

LIU. — R.  Thanhum  of  Jerusalem  .         .         .         . 

.     553 

LIV. — The  Khozari  and  its  Commentators : — 

A. — Judah  hal-Levi 

.     559  tv 

B. — R.  Solomon  ben  Menahem 

•         .         . 

.     559 

XXVIU  CONTJiNTS. 

LV. — R.  Gershom  bcu  Nathan 
Spanish,  French,  anh  Latin  Texts 

A. — Abraham  Guev  de  Cordova 

B. — E,.  Manasseh  ben  Israel    . 

C. — Isaac  Orobio  do  Castro     . 

D. — Jacob  ben  Amram  . 

Additions  and  Cobrections 
Index  


PAGE 

564 

436 
436 
450 
532 

569 
573 


INTEODUCTION 

TO    THE 

ENGLISH   TRANSLATION. 


The  late  pious  Dr.  Macbride,  ever  a  great  lover  of  the  Jewish 
people,  endowed  (as  is  well  known  in  Oxford)  an  annual 
Sermon  on  'the  Jewish  interpretation  of  prophecy.'  On  one 
occasion  when  I  was  entrusted  with  preaching  that  Sermon,  it 
occurred  to  me  that  we  wanted  larger  materials  than  can  be 
within  the  reach  of  most  preachers. 

The  extracts  indeed  from  the  older  writers,  which  we  still 
have,  are  copious,  and  more  complete  than  they  could  be  made 
in  these  days  ».  Kaymond  Martini  had  before  him  MSS.  which, 
under  the  mandate  of  the  king  of  Arragou,  had  been  brought 
together  from  the  sjoiagogues  within  his  realm.  Eaymond  de 
Peunafoi-ti  had  founded  seminaries  for  the  instruction  of  mem- 
bers of  his  order,  iu  Hebrew  and  Arabic,  to  promote  the  con- 
version of  Jews  and  Mohammedans  ^.  James  I,  king  of  Arragon, 
commissioned  Paulus  Christianus c,  'of  Jewish  birth  and  in- 
structed among  them  in  Hebrew  literature  d,'  among  others,  to 
collect  such  MSS.  as  were  to  his  purpose.    Paul  had  gone  about 

*  Those  passages  only  are  collected  here,  in  which  this  section  of  Isaiah 
is  directly  quoted.  Wiinsche,  die  Leiden  des  Messias,  has  collected  into  one 
the  passages  on  the  sufferings  of  the  Messiah  from  Martini,  Schottgen,  and 
the  rest.  Sometimes  also  the  allusion  to  this  section  is  contained  in  the 
characteristic  word  blO  (liii.  4, 1 1)  :  as  in  the  Pesikta  Rabbathi,  '  Our  Rabbins 
have  handed  down,  the  fathers  of  the  world  will  rise  in  Nisan  and  say  to 
him,  Ephraim  Messiah  our  righteousness,  though  we  are  thy  fathers,  thou 
art  better  than  we,  because  thou  hast  borne  our  iniquities  and  the  iniquities 
of  our  sons  (13':3  m:!?!  "i^'miir  nban),  and  many  and  hard  judgments 
have  passed  over  thee,  which  did  not  pass  over  the  former  or  the  later,'  &c. 
(Schcittg.  p.  133,  the  Hebrew  in  Wiinsche,  p.  67)  ;  and  in  the  account  of  a 
pious  man,  who,  when  asked  why  he  took  suffering  on  himself,  said,  '  He 
also  must  suffer  something,  since  the  Messiah  bore  the  iniquities  (m2iy  bz^C) 
of  Israel,'  Chasidim,  p.  60  in  Hengst.  Christol.  ii.  351  ed.  2. 

^  Acta  Sanctt.  Jan.  27,  i.  212*",  419"';  Gratz,  vii.  27. 

e  Wolf,  Bibl.  Hebr.  t.  i.  n.  191 2. 

^  Clement  IV  in  Carpzov's  Praef. ;  Griitz,  vii.  131. 


XXX  INTRODUCTION  TO    THE 

as  a  missionary,  disputing  with  the  Jews,  undertaking  to  '  prove 
from  the  Bible  and  the  Talmud,  that  Jesus  was  Christ  and  God  «.' 
He  knew  then  what  to  select :  a  king's  command  could  not  then 
be  resisted  in  Spain,  and  penalties  were  annexed  to  its  refusal  f. 
So  the  books  wliich  IMartiui  used,  represent  the  texts,  such  as 
existed  in  MSS.  of  the  Jewish  synagogues  in  Spain  in  the  latter 
part  of  the  thirteenth  century  ^.  They  are  spoken  of  as  '  of  the  more 
recondite'!.'  The  latest  historian  of  the  Jews  attests  his  capa- 
cities. ' '  He  was  solidly  instructed  in  Biblical  and  Rabbinical 
literature,  which  he  had  certainly  learned  from  a  baptized  Jew, 
perhaps  from  Paulus  Christianus  ;  he  read  fluently  the  writings 
of  the  Agada,  Rashi,  Ibn  Ezra,  ^Maimuni,  and  Kimchi,  and  used 
therefrom  what  seemed  to  him  calculated  to  prove  that,  not  only 
in  the  Bible,  but  also  in  the  Rabbinical  writings,  Jesus  was 
announced  as  Messiah  and  Son  of  God.'  The  distinguished 
Jewish  writer  Ben  Aderet,  who  wrote  against  himJ,  objected 
nothing  to  the  accuracy  of  his  quotations.  In  his  preface  (in 
which  he  speaks  modestly  of  himself  k)  he  saj's ',  '  I  was  enjoined 
to  compose  a  work  from  the  books  of  the  Old  Testament  which 
the  Jews  receive,  and  from  the  Talmud,  and  the  other  writings 
authentic  among  them, — a  poniai'd  which  should  be  at  hand 
for  Christian  preachers  and  worshippers,  either  in  their  sermons 
to  cut  to  the  Jews  the  bread  ^^  of  the  Divine  word,  or  to  put  an 
end  to  their  faithlessness,'  &c.  Jews  of  course  must  lay  hold  of 
any  weak  points  in  it ;  but  they  own  that  '^  it  for  the  first  time 
introduced  Christians  into  the  Jewish  world  of  thought.' 

I  had  hoped  that  the  general  statement  of  the  character  of 
Martini,  and  the  circumstances  under  which  he  compiled  his 
work,  would  have  sufiiced.  But  he  has  lately  been  denounced 
as  one  'guilty  of  impostures,'  ' weW-mecmmg  dishonesty'  (as  if 
dishonesty  were  not  aggravated  when  the  subject  is  the  faith), 
'  audacious  alteration  of  the  text,'  &c.  An  early  father  appealed 
to  the  heathen  emperor  as  to  the  calumnies  against  Christians, 
'  o  What  you  would  not  do,  you  should  not  suspect  others  of 

<^  Griitz,  1.  c.         '  Bosquet  Ep.  ad  Voisin.  in  Carpzqv  Theol.  Jud.  c.  xii. 

K  Martini  was  engaged  in  writing  the  tenth  chapter  of  his  second  part  in 
A.  D.  1275  (Pug.  Fid.  fol.  316),  but  he  must  have  collected  his  materials  before 
he  began.  ^ 

•>  '  Codices  reconditiores,'  Bosquet  Ep.  ad  Voisin.  in  Carpzov,  1.  c.  p.  92. 

'    Griitz,  vii.  163.  J  Id.  ibid.  p.  165,  note. 

^  Prooem.  n.  iv.  p.  3  ed.  Carpzov.  '  Ibid.  n.  iii. 

">  The  poniard  being  used  as  a  knife  for  cutting  bread. 

n  Griitz,  p.  164.  °  Tertull.  Apol.  c.  8. 


ENGLISH   TRANSLATION.  XXXI 

doing.'  Raymond  Martini  spent  near  forty  years  p  in  his  labours 
for  the  extensioia  of  the  truth,  which  he  loved.  Although  we 
know  him  as  a  writer,  yet  writing  was  not  his  exclusive  or 
prominent  occupation.  He  is  said  to  have  been  President  of 
eight  colleges,  founded  by  the  king  of  Arragon  to  promote  the 
study  of  the  Oriental  languages  for  the  conversion  of  Jews  and 
Mohammedans  i.  He  was  also  for  a  short  time  a  Missionary  in 
Tunis,  where  he  was  very  acceptable  to  its  king,  and  yet  this, 
too,  had  its  perils,  for  one  of  his  colleagues  became  a  martyr  J". 
He  declared  his  belief  that  our  Lord  »  put  it  into  his  heart  to 
begin  his  work,  and  he  prayed  Him  to  enable  him  to  complete 
it  in  such  wise  as  should  be  to  the  glory  of  God,  the  defence  of 
the  faith,  the  true  and  beneficial  conversion  of  unbelievers,  and 
to  the  eternal  salvation  of  himself,  the  least  of  his  order.  It 
is  best  to  speak  plainly.  Either  Martini  was  what  he  has 
hitherto  been  accounted,  an  able  and  laborious  and  conscientious 
man  with  vast  resources  at  his  command,  which  have  since  been 
lost,  or  he  was  a  forger,  a  liar,  and  hypocrite.  There  is  no  doubt 
of  his  ability.  There  is  a  saying  that  'he  spoke  Hebrew  and 
Arabic  as  fluently  as  Latin  *.'  Did  he  abuse  these  powers,  lying 
in  the  name  of  God  1 

Augustin  Justinian,  bishop  of  Nebio,  in  his  preface  to  Porchet's 
*  Victoria,'  the  materials  of  which  Porchet  professed  to  draw 
from  Martini,  says",  '^Vliat  labour,  vigils,  expense,  helps  are 
necessary  to  those  who  would  penetrate  the  secrets  of  the 
Hebrews,  I  have  myself  experienced.  But,  being  in  whatever 
degree  provided  with  all  these,  I  have  myself  read  in  the  monu- 
ments of  the  Hebrews  a  good  part  of  what  is  cited  by  Porchet 
and  Raymond,  so  that  there  is  no  room  left  for  any  doubt  as  to 
the  truthfulness  [fide]  of  their  citations.  Of  this  we  can  give 
fullest  proof  to  any  one  by  testimony  of  the  books,  from  which 
this  pi'ecious  store  was  taken  :  almost  all  of  which  I  have 
obtained  for  myself,  and  keep  carefully,  as  kings  do  their 
jewels.' 

The  loss  of  any  book  or  books,  in  the  time  before  printing 
was  discovered,  or  the  variation  of  texts,  when  they  were  only 

P  He  was  appointed  President  a.  d.  1250,  died  after  a.  d.  1286.  His 
signature  appears  in  a  conventus,  July  i,  1284,  Diago  Hist.  Praed.  Arrag. 
ii.  28. 

1  Herzog,  Real-Encyclopadie  xii.  570,  Art.  Raymund  Martino. 

"■  Diago,  1.  c.  '  Praef.  end,  n.  18. 

*  Herzog,  ibid.  °  Quoted  in  Carpzov's  Praef.  c.  12,  p.  104. 


XXXii  INTRODUCTION    TO   THE 

handed  down  by  individual  scribes,  can  siii'prise  no  one.  In 
many  subjects  we  have  to  regret  our  losses.  In  this  little  volume 
an  exposition  of  Benjamin  of  Nehawend  w,  another  of  Saadyah 
Gaon  X,  both  of  them  celebrated  writers,  are  alleged.  They 
must  have  existed  in  the  eleventh  centuiy,  but  are,  as  yet,  lost. 
The  remarkable  saying  of  Joseph  Ben  Caspi,  I  believe,  is  known 
at  present  through  the  one  writer  who  ([uotes  him  J',  What 
would  have  been  thought  of  Martini,  had  he  quoted  from  a  book^^ 
anterior  to  the  Talmud,  of  which  those  who  have  previously 
quoted  it  are  said  to  have  alleged  only  one  saying  1  A  Jewish 
controversialist  a,  who  himself  supposes  Israel  to  be  the  subject 
of  the  section,  says,  as  an  admission,  that  in  the  Talmud  it  is  ex- 
pounded of  the  Messiah  :  '  It  is  not  to  be  found  in  our  editions.' 
Dr.  Neubauer,  who  has  recently  been  employed  by  the  French 
Government  to  ascertain  AA'hat  remains  there  are  of  Jewish 
literature  in  Spain  and  Portugal,  tells  us,  '  ^  There  are  not  more 
than  loo  ISISS.  in  those  countries,  the  seat  of  Hebrew  learning 
of  all  bi'anches  during  five  centuries  (1040  to  1490).'  All  prq- 
_b9l)ly,  which  Martini  used,  must  have  perished. 

It  is  almost  degi'ading  to  an  author  of  accredited  honesty  to 
defend  him  on  the  ground  that  fraud  would  have  defeated  its 
own  purpose.  We  use  JSIartini  as  a  repertorium  of  extracts  from 
books  which  have  been  lost.  But  Martini  wrote  it  to  furnish 
materials  for  those  of  his  own  order,  engaged  in  the  like  studies 
for  the  conversion  of  Jews  and  Mohammedans,  but  chiefly  of 
the  Jews.  But  the  Jews  had  able  controversialists.  The  books 
alleged  were  their  study  from  eai'ly  youth.  To  what  end  to  use 
fraud  which  would  be  patent  and  rebound  in  the  first  disputa- 
tion 1  Passages  quoted  by  Maitini  are  also  quoted,  indepen- 
dently of  him  apparently,  by  a  Jewish  convert,  Hieronymus  a 
S.  Fide,  who  had  his  authorities  from  his  own  Jewish  studies. 
He  also  quotes  from  a  '  Geuesi  magno  antiquissimoc;'  but  his 
quotations,  while  agreeing  in  the  main  with  those  of  Martini, 
vary  from  them,  quoting  sometimes  a  text  more  of  Holy  Scripture, 

w  Quoted  by  Yepheth  b.  Ali;  see  p.  31. 
^  Quoted  by  Ibn  Ezra,  p.  42. 
y  Ibn  Daniin,  p.  203. 

^  Tana  d'  be  Eliyyahu,  below,  p.  385  ;  see  Wolf,  B.  H.  i.  p.  147. 
"■  Meir  b.  Shim'on  quoting  Sotah,  §  i,  below,  p.  377. 

''  Neubauer,  Talm.  and  Rabb.  Literat.  p.  9,  (an  extract  from  tbe  Annual 
Report  of  the  Philological  Society,  London,  1876.) 

<=  Hieron.  Ix  S.  Fide  contra  Jud.  i.  2,  in  Bibl.  Max.  Patr.  t.  26,  p.  533. 


ENGLISH   TRANSLATION.  XXXIU 

sometimes  a  text  less,  sometimes  omitting  a  portion  of  his  text, 
sometimes  explaining  it  in  his  own  words. 

Under  his  name  before  his  conversion,  Joshua  Ibn  Vives 
Allorqui,  he  is  well  spoken  of  by  the  Jewish  historian,  who 
mentions  his  expostulations  under  the  form  of  enquiries  from 
a  former  convert,  well  known  as  Paulus  Burgensis  ^.  His  book, 
according  to  the  account  of  the  same  historian,  was  the  basis  of 
the  celebrated  disputation  of  Tortosa,  which,  amid  many  inter- 
ruptions, lasted  for  a  year  and  nine  months,  fi-om  Feb.  1 4 1 3  to 
Nov.  12,  1414,  in  68  sessions  c.  The  subject  of  the  dispute  was 
whether  the  position  of  Hieronymus,  that  the  Talmud  attested 
that  Jesus  was  the  Messiah,  was  true  or  no^.  The  Jewish 
historian  says  s,  '  Hieronymus  adduced  the  notorious  Agada- 
passages  out  of  the  Talmud  and  other  Jewish  Avi-itiugs,  to  prove 
that  most  incredible  thing,  that  the  Talmud  itself  attested  in  some 
degree  that  Jesus  was  the  Messiah.'  He  speaks  of  them  as  '  insipid.' 
He  denounces  in  no  measured  terms  the  weakness  of  his  argu- 
ments \  or  (in  the  second  part)  the  charges  against  the  Talmud  : 
but  he  speaks  of  him  as  '  the  apostate  well-read  in  Jewish 
literature','  and  brings  not  the  slightest  imputation  against  tho 
accuracy  of  his  citations.  Hieronymus  himself  saysi,  'I  intend 
by  the  grace  of  God  to  verify,  that  these  24  conditions  were 
to  be  in  the  true  Messiah  promised  in  the  Law,  by  authorities 
and  glosses  made  by  masters  among  the  Jews  and  Talmudists 
whose  words  no  one  of  the  Jews  ventured  in  any  way  to  deny.' 
And  they  were  not  denied.  But  among  these  passages  were 
some  for  which  Martini  has  been  denounced  as  a  clever  falsifi- 
cator. 


^  Griitz,  viii.  pp.  82-84. 

o  Ibid.  p.  118.  The  book  contained  24  conditions  which  the  Messiah  was 
to  fulfil,  as  in  Hieron.  pp.  531,  532.  Hieronymus'  work  is  also  divided  into 
the  same  two  parts:  i.  The  testimony  to  the  Messiah;  2.  The  allegations 
against  the  Talmud. 

'  Ibid.  p.  120.  B  Ibid. 

•*  '  Geronimo  first  elaborated  a  writing,  to  establish  out  of  Jewish  writings, 
that  Jesus  was  the  Messiah  and  was  God.  He  brought  together  therein,  all 
which  his  predecessors  had  produced  of  apparent  proofs,  sophisms,  per- 
version of  Scripture,  resting  on  a  confused  and  senseless  interpretation, 
added  thereto  new  senselessness,  elevated  naive,  harmless,  allusive  Agada- 
passages  to  essential  articles  of  faith.'  '  The  writing  breathed  a  patristic  and 
Rabbinic  spirit,'  'he  assailed  Rabbinic  Judaism  with  Rabbinic  weapons.' 
Gratz,  viii.  116-I18. 

'  Ibid.  p.  114.  i  L.  c. 

C 


XXXIV  INTRODUCTION    TO   THE 

The  quotation  from  the  Siphre  ^  and  two  from  R.  Mosheh  Had- 
darshan '  occur  in  Hieronymus  also,  but  with  variations  which 
shew  that  liis  authority  was  independent  of  Martini. 

In  the  following  volume  a  passage  from  the  Talmud  is  quoted 
with  an  addition  of  two  words.  In  this  Martini's  text  is  so 
clearly  right,  that  it  can  hardly  fail  to  be  accepted.  It  is  one 
in  which  names  of  the  Messiah  are  enumerated.  With  one 
exception,  each  consists  of  a  single  word.  '  Shiloh,'  '  Yinnon ' 
(Ps,  Ixxii.  17),  'Chaninah,'  '  Menahem.'  In  the  present  text  of 
the  Talmud  the  other  name  has  been  made  '  leprous  of  the  house 
of  Rabbi.'  Such  a  name  could  only  have  found  acceptance 
through  the  absence  of  good  MSS.  Martini's  MS.  restores  the 
sense : '  The  Rabbis  say, "  the  leprous  one  "  [with  reference  doubtless 
to  an  explanation  of  ver.  4  "i] ;  those  of  the  house  of  Rabbi  say, 
"  the  sick  one,"  as  it  is  said,  "  surely  he  hath  borne  our  sick- 
nesses." '  This  clear  case  gives  a  favourable  impression  as  to 
Martini's  texts. 

Formerly,  Christians  used  to  charge  the  Jews  with  falsifying 
their  MSS. :  the  tables  ai'e  now  turned,  and  the  charge  has  been 
made  against  Martini.  There  is  no  ground  for  these  mutual 
,  criminations.  The  Jews  had  a  perfect  right  to  enlarge  or  con- 
tract their  texts,  which  were  made  for  private  use,  so  long  as  that 
(  text  itself  was  not  authoritative,  as  the  Holy  Scriptui-es. 

It  is  notorious  that  MSS.  did  represent  their  text  more  or 
less  accurately.  Even  with  printed  books  before  him,  Schottgen 
complained  of  the  injuries  which  the  text  had  undergone.  Thus, 
he  shews  how,  in  a  long  passage,  the  Pesikta  Rabbathi  and 
the  Yalkut  Shimeoni  fill  up  and  coiTect  one  another  i^.  He 
restores  the  Pesikta,  '  in  a  place  veiy  dislocated,'  from  the  Eclia 
Rabbathi  o ;    and  again  in  some  degree  out  of  the  Yalkut  p  and 


fc  Below,  p.  10,  quoted  as  Ziphrat  in  Hieron.  i.  11.  The  spelling  is 
throughout  very  bad  ;  but  for  it  he  is  not  responsible.  The  jiassage  in  the 
Siphr^  varying  in  the  present  editions,  I  would  only  add  that  Edzardi  quotes 
two  i)assages,  in  which  mention  is  made  of  '  the  merit  of  the  Messiah  '  (notes 
on  the  Pug.  Fid.  p.  866,  1.  7,  in  Wolf,  Bibl.  Hebr.  iv.  632),  and  that  the 
Talm.  "lycann  (Hebr.  text,  p.  9),  'afflicted  himself,'  is  a  Jewish,  not  a 
Christian  conception  of  the  Messiah  (comp.  mjynnbi  Di^b  ITebr.  text,  p.  35). 
Not  knowing  of  the  atoning  death,  they  pictured  voluntary  self-affliction. 

•  That  beginning  '  Says  R.  B'rekyah,'  and  that  '  la  the  h&jinning'  below, 

P-  33- 

™  See  Levy,  Lex.  Chald.  p.  245. 

°  Horae  Hebraicae  de  Messia,  pp.  1 27-134. 

°   Ibid.  p.  136.  P  Ibid.  p.  172. 


ENGLISH    TRANSLATION.  XXXV 

the  Rabbothn.  He  supplies  from  the  Tanchuma  what  Martini 
quotes  from  his  Bereshith  Eabba '" :  he  restores  from  one  edition 
of  the  Pesikta  Sotartas  what  had  clearly  been  omitted  in  another*. 
He  shews  how  theTanchuma  may  be  supplied  out  of  the  Bereshith 
Rabba,  as  quoted  by  ]\Tartini  u,  or  how  the  Bereshith  Eabba  may 
be  supplied  in  part  out  of  the  Yalkut,  but  more  fully  out  of  that 
of  Martini  "■',  or  from  the  Yalkut  alone  ^.  He  marks  omissions 
in  some  editions  x;  he  complains  also  of  dislocation  and  corrup- 
tions of  the  Zohar  y  and  the  Tanchuma  z.  He  notices  variations 
of  the  '  son  of  David '  and  '  house  of  David '  in  different  citations 
of  the  same  passage » ;  of  the  substitution  of  the  Messiah  ben 
Joseph  for  the  Messiah  ben  David  ^ ;  the  omission  of  IT'U'JO  17D  c. 
He  uses  the  modern  critical  canon,  that  the  number  of  various 
readings  imply  con-uption^.  Dr.  Neubauer  informs  me  that 
different  collections  and  copies  of  Midrashim  are  more  or  less 
full,  and  that  some  have  been  lost.  Indeed,  I  could  not  but  , 
think,  that  Jewish  writers  who  quoted  them,  generally  had  a  \ 
larger  range  before  them,  than  we  have  now.  However,  I  would  , 
say  that  I  took  upon  myself  the  responsibility  of  requesting 
Dr.  Neubauer  to  insert  the  quotations  from  Martini,  and  that 
he  inserted  them  (as  he  placed  the  extracts  from  the  Zohar)  in 
consideration  of  my  wishes,  leaving  it  to  me  to  defend  them. 
Amid  the  vai'ious  sources  of  human  mistake,  we  are  bound  by 
the  duties  of  our  common  humanity,  not  to  assume  the  very 
worst,  dishonesty ;  but  to  believe  what  a  person  says  that  he  saw 
with  his  own  eyes.  Enough  has  been  said,  perhaps,  w^here 
demonstration  on  either  side  is  impossible,  since  the  extracts 
were  made  neai'ly  six  centuries  ago,  and  the  MSS.  which  Martini 
had  before  him  have  long  since  perished. 

To  return.  Besides  this  gi'eat  and  (as  I  believe  on  a  study 
of  near  fifty  years)  accurate  repertorium,  drawn  from  MSS. 
before  the  invention  of  printing,  and  including  extracts  from 
works  which  have  since  been  lost,  are  the  large  collectanea  of 
Schottgen,  as  also  those  in  Lightfoot,  Sommer  on  the  Theology  of 
the  Sohar,  Glasener  on  the  twofold  Messiah,  Edzardi's  works,  as 
also  the  careful  monogi-aph  of  Dr.  M^  Caul  on  Is.  liii,  and  others. 

But  while  these  brought  within  the  reach  of  all,  the  older 

1  Horae  Hebraicae  de  Messia,  p.  197.  "  Pp.  loi,  103. 

s  P.  141.         *  P.  97.         "  Pp.  72,  73.         "  Pp.  161, 162.  "  P.  164. 

»  P.  182.       y  Pp.  109,  241.      '  P.  74.      »  P.  227.       ''  Pp.  228,  229. 
"  P.  231  and  elsewhere.    See  other  variations,  ibid.  pp.  237,  239,  240. 
^  P.  159. 

C  2 


XXXVl  INTRODUCTION    TO   THE 

traditional  interpretations,  we  seemed  to  me  to  have  a  less 
knowledge  of  the  later  Jewish  mind,  from  the  eleventh  century 
onwards.  It  may  be  that,  as,  on  all  subjects  in  all  nations,  the 
original  minds  are  few,  and  the  mass  of  writings  are  but  repro- 
ductions of  the  few,  so  it  may  be  here.  However,  be  this  as  it 
may,  whether  or  no  it  shall  appear  that  the  more  recent  writers 
among  the  Jews,  follow  the  few  leaders,  as  Raslii,  Joseph  Kimchi 
(himself  followed  by  his  son  David),  Ibn  Ezra,  and  Abarbanel, 
both  in  their  own  interpretations  and  in  their  objections  to 
Christianity,  I  thought  that  we  wanted  fuller  evidence  of  their 
mind. 

Those  to  whom  most  had  access  were  very  few  in  number ; 
and  much  remained  to  be  added  from  MSS.  Abarbanel,  I  found, 
quoted  a  commentary  on  this  section  by  a  celebrated  writer, 
Moses  ben  Nachman®,  which  had  escaped  the  vast  knowledge 
of  Wolf  (Bibliotheca  Hebi'aea)  and  De  llossi.  Dr.  Neubauer 
pointed  it  out  to  me  in  the  Michael  collection  of  MSS.  which 
he  was  cataloguing,  as  also  another  wholly  unknown.  Besides 
the  additions  from  MSS.,  I  expected  that  some  of  the  printed 
works  might  be  filled  up  or  corrected  by  MSS.  Pococke  pointed 
out,  more  than  two  centuries  ago^,  by  aid  of  the  first  edition 
of  Kimchi  g  on  the  Prophets,  and  two  Oxford  MSS.,  that,  from 
different  causes,  passages  directed  against  Christianity  had  been 
suppressed  in  printed  editions.  But  if  we  wish  to  know  any  one's 
mind,  we  must  know  it  wholly. 

I  requested  Dr.  Neubauer  then  to  collect  for  me  all  Jewish 
interpretations  of  Is.  lii.  13-liii.  end,  engaging  myself  to  have 
them  printed.  This  he  willingly  undertook,  as  an  important 
literaiy  work,  and  has  executed  Avith  a  fulness  which  could  only 
have  been  attained  by  one  with  his  extensive  Oriental  learning 
and  knowledge  of  Jewish  literature.  Twenty-eight  1'  of  the  larger 
extracts,  and  nine  of  the  shorter,  have  been  collected  from  MSS. 
in  the  Bodleian,  and  libraries  of  St.  Petersburg,  Paris,  Piome, 
Florence,  Parma,  Leyden,  Breslau,  Upsala.  Of  the  printed  com- 
ments, the  familiar  names  of  Rashi,  Ibn  Ezra,  Kimchi  (and  his 
epitome,  the  Michlal  Yophi),  Abarbanel,  Moses  Elsheikh,  with 
those  of  R.  Samuel  Lanyado  and  R.  Meir  Aramah,  were  probably 


"   It  was  printed  by  Steinschneider  ;  see  Dr.  Neubaucr's  Preface,  p.  ix. 
'  Not.  Miscell.  ad  Port.  Mos.  c.  8 ;  Works,  t.  i.  pp.  241-249,  published 
A.D.  1653. 

^  Ed.  Pisaur.,  a.d.  151 5. 

**  The  Fuente  Claro  is  also  taken  from  the  one  printed  copy,  which  exists, 


J 


ENGLISH   TILA.NSLATION.  XXXVll 

alone  in  reach  of  most.  Of  these,  Kimchi,  Ibn  Ezra,  and  Meir 
Ai'amah  were  collated  afresh,  and  Saadyah  Gaon's  text  was 
restored  from  the  single  known  MS.  (that  now  at  Pai'is  has  heen 
acquired  since). 

Tims  far  I  should  only  have  deserved  the  thanks  of  Hebrew 
and  Arabic  scholars  for  having  suggested  the  work  to  one  so 
competent  to  complete  it,  who  has  spared  no  pains  in  its 
execution.  I  incurred  personal  responsibility  by  requesting 
Dr.  Neubauer  to  have  his  collection  ti'anslated  into  English 
under  his  own  superintendence.  On  the  one  side,  the  transla- 
tion, which  has  been  done  with  gi'eat  and  accurate  pains,  made 
the  collection  accessible  to  those  who,  although  idiomatically 
acquainted  with  Hebrew,  and  so,  capable  of  availing  themselves 
of  it,  had  not  had  leisure  to  become  Arabic  scholars,  or  to  read 
Rabbinical  Hebrew  fluentlj%  and  so  could  make  little  use  of  the 
originals.  On  the  other  side,  the  translation  placed  this  amount 
of  Jewish  controversy  (as  it  must  be  for  the  most  part)  within 
the  reach  of  persons,  men  or  women,  who  have  not  the  knowledge 
required  to  estimate  aright  any  one  thing  in  the  book.  Yet  in 
these  days,  in  which  almost  everybody  reads  eveiything  new, 
some  might  use  it  to  confirm  their  unbelief;  some  might  be 
discomforted  by  the  repetition  of  denials  of  the  faith  in  it. 
I  was  myself  startled  at  the  strength  of  Bishop  Kidder's  protest, 
and  his  feai-s  of  the  effect  of  onei  rather  common-place  work. 
Yet  in  these  days  anj-thing  is  but  a  drop  in  a  raging  sea.  "While 
then  I  hope  that  this  book  may  enable  us  to  uudei'stand  the 
better  the  difficulties  of  our  Jewish  brethren,  I  would,  while 
(owing  to  the  ciixumstances  of  the  publication)  I  remain  strictly 
on  the  defensive,  briefly  say,  why  this  volume  in  no  way  shakes 
the  evidence  from  this  great  prophecy,  but  rather  illustrates  it. 

It  will  be  observed  on  examination,  that  next  to  nothing 
turns  upon  x-enderings  of  the  Hebrew.  The  objections  raised  by 
Jewish  controversialists  in  the  following  volume,  in  only  four  or, 
at  most,  five  words  J,  turn  on  the  language.    Of  this  hereafter. 

'  See  Preface,  p.  xxi. 

J  I  do  not  include  ni'  (lii.  15);  tor  although  the  interpretations  are 
different,  it  is  never  mentioned  in  Jewish  controversy,  nor  does  anything 
turn  upon  it.  mn  is,  in  the  Old  Testament,  uniformly  used  of'  besprinkling,' 
most  frequently  of  blood,  but  also  of  the  oil,  or  water  with  the  ashes  of  the 
heifer,  in  symbolic  purification.  All  the  meanings  ascribed  to  it  by  Jewish 
interpreters  are  derived  from  the  meaning  '  sprinkle.'  Two  of  the  earliest, 
Aquila  and  Theodotion,  have  the  technical  word,  used  in  the  Greek  of  the 


XXXVlll  INTliODUCTlON    TO    TllK 

The  characteristics,  iu  which  all  agree,  are,  that  there  would 
be  a  prevailing  unbelief  as  to  the  subject  of  the  prophecy,  lowly 

Old  Testament  of'  sprinkling  to  cleanse,'  pavriau.  These  render  '  besprinkle' 
with  the  accusative  of  the  person,  which  is,  as  Gesenius  observed,  implied  by 
the  proper  name  rTM\ 

2.  Others,  in  view  of  the  temporal  Messias  whom  they  expected,  supply 
'  sprinkle  the  blood  of,'  Yephcth  (p.  21),  Jehudah  b.  Bala'm  (p.  550),  Ibn  Ezra 
(p.  44),  Anonymous,  xvi.  (p.  64),  or  'scatter,'  Tanchum  (p.  553),  Aaron  b. 
Joseph  (p.  86),  Ibn  Crispin  (p.  105,  but  explaining  'scatter 'as  '  one  who 
sprinkles  blood'),  Abarbanel  (p.  190)  ;  'expel,  perhaps  with  bloodshed,'  xxxiv. 
(p.  231),  Moses  Elsheikh  (p.  262) ;  '  sprinkle,  so  as  to  leave  very  few  indeed,' 
Lanyado  (p.  301),  David  Altschulcr  (p.  367). 

3.  Others,  in  the  same  view,  render  '  scatter '  (as,  in  sprinkling,  drop  parts 
from  drop),  Symmachus  (p.  i),  Jonathan  (p.  5),  Saadyah  (p.  17);  'sprinkle 
and  scatter,'  Gershom  (p.  564);  'expel  and  drive  away,'  Joseph  Kara  (p.  41), 
Ibn  Mali  (p.  75),  Jacob  b.  Reuben,  Karaite  (p.  61),  xvii.  (p.  67)  ;  '  scatter,' 
Nizzachon  vet.  (p.  90),  Naphthali  Altschuler  (p.  320),  m.  (p.  393),  Herz  Hom- 
berg  (p.  402) ;  'scatter  and  conquer'  (but  admitting  2  and  6  to  be  possible), 
Abarbanel  (p.  171);  'conquer,'  Joseph  b.  Nathan  (p.  72);  'cast  down  the 
horns  of,'  Rashi  (p.  37),  Abraham  b.  Judali  (p.  314). 

4.  Derived  from  this,  is  'rule,'  Ibn  Shaprut  (p.  94),  Christian  in  Mosheh 
Cohen  (p.  115),  and  Mosheh  Cohen  (p.  117),  Christian  in  Lopez  (p.  341), 
and  Lopez  (p.  350) ;  '  by  his  knowledge  hold  sway  over  them  and  gain  admit- 
tance to  the  table  of  kings/  Meir  Aramah  (p.  241). 

5.  A  few  render  'teaching'  (again,  drop  by  drop).  Others,  'will  teach 
wholesome  doctrine,'  Jacob  b.  Reuben,  Karaite  (p.  61);  '  his  speech  will  drop 
upon,'  Moses  b.  Nachman  (p.  80) ;  '  preach  and  prophesy,'  Shelomo  Levi 

(P-  279)- 

6.  'Speak  of  (sprmkling  words),  Farissol  (p.  223),  or 'make  to  speak,' 
Ibn  Danan  (p.  207). 

7.  'Make  to  speak,'  J.  and  D.  Kimchi  (p.  50),  Astruc  (p.  130),  Isaac 
Ehyyah  (p.  140),  Sal.  b.  Melech  (p.  217),  Troki  (p.  256),  Moses  of  Salerno 
(p.  381),  Manasseh  b.  Israel  (p.  437),  Persian  version  (p.  xi),  Tataric 
Karaite  version  (p.  xiv),  Orobio  (p.  484). 

8.  Segre  is,  of  course,  alone  in  thinking  that '  nr  is  for  r\^v,  omitting  the  "1 
for  euphony  '  (p.  301). 

I  think  all  these  renderings  unidiomatic.  In  no  language  would  a  person 
say  absolutely  that  he  '  besprinkled  nations,'  meaning  that  he  '  shed  their 
blood,'  or  that  he  '  scattered  them,'  or  that  he  '  taught  them,'  or  that  he 
'  ruled  over  them  ; '  or  that,  he  '  made  them  to  sprinkle,'  meant  that  he  '  made 
them  to  speak  of  him.'  Still,  let  any  take  which  of  them  he  willed,  the 
general  meaning  would  remain  the  same,  that  he,  whom  they  once  despised, 
did  these  things  which  were  the  acts  of  one,  who  had  power  over  them,  as  a . 
whole.  They,  at  the  same  time,  by  selecting  one  or  other  of  these,  shew 
that  though  some  of  them  were  Arabic-speaking  Jews,  the  favourite  modern 
explanation,  made  them  '  spring  for  joy,'  did  not  occur  to  them,  as  indeed 
Golius's  '  exultavit  prae  hilaritate'  (retained  by  Frcytag)  is  a  slip  for  '  the  ass 
sprung  from  its  night's  resting-place.'  Luzzatto  alone  leaves  the  Hebrew  tra- 
dition for  the  German  with  his 'made  to  leap,'  'startled,'  pp.  414, 415.  Though 
at  variance  with  the  uniform  Hebrew  meaning,  it  docs  not  affect  the  sense. 


ENGLISH   TltiNSLATIOX.  XXXIX 

beginnings,  among  circumstances  outwardly  unfavourable,  but 
before  God,  and  protected  by  Him  ;  sorrows,  injustice,  contempt, 
death,  which  were  the  portion  of  the  sufferer ;  that  he  was  ac- 
counted a  transgressoi-,  yet  that  his  sufferings  were,  in  some  way, 
vicarious,  the  ju!<t  for  the  unjust ;  his  meek  silence  ;  his  willing 
acceptance  of  his  death ;  his  being  with  the  rich  in  his  death  ; 
his  soul  being  (in  some  waj')  an  offering  for  sin,  and  God's  accept- 
ance of  it ;  his  prolonged  life  ;  his  making  many  righteous ; 
his  continued  intercession  for  transgressors  ;  the  greatness  of  his 
exaltation,  in  proportion  to  the  depth  of  his  humiliation ;  the 
submission  of  kings  to  him  ;  his  abiding  reign. 

Now  these  are  apparent  on  the  surface  in  ti'anslations  which 
adhere  to  the  letter.  Whatever  difference  there  is  in  details  of 
single  words,  all  these  stand  out  in  the  translation  of  Saadyah 
Gaon  (who  is  himself  stated  to  have  interpreted  the  whole  section 
of  Jeremiah  i),  or  the  Persian  or  the  Tataric  translation  J,  or  that 
of  Manasseh  b.  Israel  k.  The  question  is  not, '  What  is  the  pic- 
ture?' in  this  all  are  agreed;  but,  'Whose  image  or  likeness 
does  it  bear  ? ' 

But  cleai-ly  as  all  this  lies  in  the  words,  none  beforehand 
would  understand  how  it  could  be  fulfilled  in  one  person.  For 
none  could  tell  beforehand,  how  death,  which  closes  all  on  this 
earth,  was  to  be  the  vestibule  to  a  God-given  kingdom ;  or  how 
kings  should  bow  down  before  one  who  had  been  the  object  of 
contempt.  *  We  cannot,'  says  one  of  the  later  of  these  writers  ^, 
'  interpret  each  individual  detail  in  it  of  the  Messiah,  because  we 
do  not  know  all  the  incidents  of  his  advent,  or  the  precise 
manner  of  the  redemption  which  he  will  accomplish  for  Israel ; ' 
and  another  ^  says,  that  '  it  was  given  by  God  as  a  description  of 
the  Messiah,  whereby,  when  any  should  claim  to  be  the  Messiah, 
to  judge  by  the  resemblance  or  non-resemblance  to  it,  whether 
he  were  the  Messiah  or  no.' 

Those  of  old,  to  whom  the  later  Jews  referred  as  authorities, 
dwelt  on  the  one  or  the  other  side  of  the  picture ;  some  on  the 

'  Dr.  Neubauer  tells  me  that  this  interpretation  is  not  in  his  book  on  '  the 
'faith,'  some  of  which  is  controversial  against  Christians  (Poc.  148),  and  sug- 
gests that  Saadyah  may  have  subjoined  a  sliort  commentai-y  to  his  translation 
of  Isaiah  as  he  did  to  that  of  Job  (Hunt.  511)  and  of  the  Psalms.  His  trans- 
lation of  the  Psalms  is  found  in  MSS.,  both  with  and  without  the  commentary; 
with,  cod.  Poc.  281 ;  without,  cod.  Hunt.  416. 

J  Of  these  two  last,  I  was  enabled  to  judge  through  the  kindness  of  another. 

•^  Pp.  436-440  below.     It  is  otherwise  in  the  paraphrase,  ibid. 

1  Ibn  Danan,  p.  116.  ™  Ibn  Crispin,  p.  114. 


xl  INTRODUCTION    TO   THE 

vicarious  suflferings  of  the  Messiah",  some  on  his  exaltation », 
without  attempting  to  reconcile  the  two. 

The  faith  in  the  vicarious  sufferings  survived  in  the  mystical 
school,  so  that  even  a  writer?  of  the  latter  part  of  the  sixteenth 
centuiy,  preserves,  from  a  work  quoted  as  an  authority  in  the 
Talmud  i,  as  having  been  revealed  to  their  great  mystical  writer 
Simeon  ben  Yocliai,  the  remarkable  saying"",  '  The  meaning  of  the 
words  "bruised  for  our  iniquities"  is,  that  since  the  Messiah 
bears  our  iniquities,  which  produce  the  effect  of  his  being 
bruised,  it  follows  that  whoso  will  not  admit  that  the  Messiah 
thus  suffers  for  our  iniquities,  must  endure  and  suffer  for  them 
himself.'  The  belief  that  the  Messiah  was  an  object  of  contempt 
survives  also  in  the  prayers  of  the  German  Jews  for  the  fii"st  day 
of  the  Passovers ;  his  vicarious  sufferings  are  pleaded  in  their 
prayers  on  the  day  of  Atonement'.  It  survived  also  in  the 
belief  of  a  Messiah  ben  Joseph,  to  whom  were  allotted  the 
sufferings  foretold  of  the  Messiah.  Those  who  place  the  mystical 
books  at  a  later  date  bring  down  also  the  date,  during  which  the 
belief  in  a  suffering  Messiah  continued  among  them. 

But  a  Buffering  Messiah,  and  a  Messiah  who  should  deliver 
them  from  their  enemies,  were  humanly  incompatible  in  the 
same  person.  Before  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  the  Jews 
looked  for  the  coming  of  a  Messiah  to  save  it ;  afterwards, 
to  restore  it.  As  Christians  have  looked  for  the  coming  of 
antichrist  and  the  Second  Coming  of  Christ,  so  the  Jews 
looked  for  their  ]\Iessiah".     Every  token  of  evil  made  R.  Akiba 

n  Jonathan,  v.  3  (p.  5)  ;  Talmud  (p.  7) ;  Midrash  Rabba  (p.  9)  ;  Yalkut  (p.  10, 
n.  3)  ;  Siphre,  in  the  time  of  Martini  (pp.  10,  11)  ;  Tanchuma,  also  in  Mar- 
tini (p.  21)  ;  Pesikta,  in  Abkath  Rochel,  i.  2,  p.  7  (ibid.)  ;  Zohar  (p.  14); 
Bereshith  Rabba,  in  Martini  (pp.  3.3-35);  'our  Rabbis'  in  Rashi,  ap. 
Martini  (j).  39) ;  Tana  d'  be  Eliyj'ahu,  as  from  Shim'on  b.  Yochai  (pp.  385, 
386)  ;  INIidrash  Conen  (p.  394)  ;  'Asereth  Memroth  (ibid.) ;  \alkut  Clmdash 
(p.  398) ;  voluntary  suffering,  Bereshith  Rabba  (p.  35),  Sepher  Chasidim  (ab. 
p.  xxix) ;  contempt.  Mysteries  of  Simeon  b.  Yochai  (p.  .^2).  Other  passages  in 
which  sufferings  of  the  Messiah  are  spoken  of,  though  not  in  reference  to  Is.  liii, 
are  in  Sanhedrin,  dist.  Chelek  (Mart.  fol.  228  ;  Wiinsche,  pp.  56,  57) ;  Pesikta 
Rabbathi  (Schottgen,  loci  gen.,  n.  xcv.  p.  133 ;  Wiinsche,  p.  66)  a  long  passage. 

°  In  Jonathan  chiefly  (pp.  5,  6)  ;  Yalkut  (p.  9,  n.  i,  2)  ;  Zohar  (pp.  12, 13); 
Bereshith  Rabba  (Mart.  p.  33,  n.  i);  'a  Midrash  Aggada'  in  Rashi  Mart. 
(PP-  39'  40)  ;  Midrash  Tillim  on  Ps.  ii.  (Mart.  p.  423). 

P  Eliyyah  de  Vidas  (1575),  p.  385. 

1  Tana  d'  bfi  Eliyyahu,  quoted  Sanhedrin,  fol.  97,1,1.  ult.  of  the  duration 
of  the  world  for  6000  years  ;  2000  years,  void  (tohu) ;  2000,  the  law  ;  2000, 
the  days  of  the  Messiah.     See  Martini  ii.  10  init.,  fol.  315. 

■•  Pp.  386,  387.         s  p.  39S  u.  Pref.  p.  xvii.  *  P.  399  w.  Pref.  ibid. 

"  Grjitz  apologises  for  the  expectations  among  the  Jews,  which  were  so 


ENGLISH   TRANSLATION,  xH 

expect  the  more  the  Messias,  whom  lie  found  in  Bar  Cochab. 
In  the  rebellion  against  Antoninus  Pius,  the  celebrated  mystic 
Simeon  ben  Yochai  said,  in  expectation  of  a  Parthian  invasion, 
'^'When  you  see  a  Persian  [Parthian]  horse  fostened  at  the 
gravestones  in  the  land  of  Israel,  then  hope  for  the  Messiah/ 
Yet  even  in  the  controversy  with  Christians,  the  belief  that  the 
Messiah  should  die  was  not  extinct  in  the  second  century.  In 
S.  Justin's  time,  Trypho  is  still  alleged  to  declare  in  the  name  of 
his  people, '  '^^That  the  Scriptures  do  say  that  Christ  should  suffer, 
is  plain,  but  we  wish  to  learn  if  you  can  prove  also,  that  it  should 
be  by  a  kind  of  suffering  which  is  cursed  in  the  law,'  '  ^  That 
he  should  suffer  and  be  led  as  a  sheep  to  the  slaughter,  we  know; 
but  if  he  was  to  be  crucified,  and  die  so  shamefully  and  dis- 
honoui'ably  by  a  death  which  is  cursed  in  the  law,  prove  to  us, 
for  we  cannot  bring  ourselves  to  conceive  this.'  The  Jews  at 
that  time  explained  Isaiah,  chap,  ix,  of  Hezekiahv;  they  offered 
no  solution  of  this.  The  Jews,  of  whom  Tertullian  reports,  also 
remarkably  limit  their  objections  to  this.  '^  Concerning  the 
last  step  of  His  passion,  you  raise  a  doubt,  affirming  that  the 
passion  of  the  cross  was  not  px'edicted  with  reference  to  Christ ; 
and  urging  besides  that  it  is  not  credible,  that  God  should  have 
exposed  His  own  Son  to  that  kind  of  death ;  because  Himself 
said,  "  Cursed  is  every  one  who  shall  have  hung  on  a  tree." ' 
But  they  do  not  appear  to  have  set  up  any  counter-explanation ; 
only  as  Tertullian  says  ^,  '  In  the  glory  of  the  Second  Coming, 
upon  which  they  fixed  their  eyes,  they  overlooked  the  humilia- 
tion of  the  first.'  The  first  countei'-explauation  which  we  hear 
of  is  that  so  often  quoted  from  Orlgen ^:  'I  remember  once 
having  used  these  prophecies  in  a  disquisition  with  those  called 
wise  among  the  Jews,  whereon  the  Jew  said,  that  these  things 
were  prophesied  of  the  whole  people  as  one,  which  was  both 
dispersed  abi'oad  and  smitten,  that  there  might  be  many  prose- 
lytes, on  the  ground  that  Jews  were  scattered  in  the  many 

often  deceived,  by  referring  to  the  like  failure  of  expectations  of  the  near 
coming  of  our  Lord,  among  Christians. 

"  Gratz,  iv.  206.  ^  Dial.  89,  pp.  185, 186  O.'if.  Tr. 

»  Ibid.  n.  90,  p.  186.  Mosheh  b.  Nachman  says,  'There  is  no  mention 
made  in  the  Parashah  that  the  Messiah  would  be  delivered  into  the  hands 
who  hated  him,  or  that  he  would  be  slain  and  hang  upon  a  tree'  (p.  84). 

y  Ibid.  n.  68,  p.  160.         ^  Adv.  Jud.  c.  x  ;  Works,  t.  iii.  p.  125  Ediub.  Tr. 

»  Ibid.  c.  14.  S.  Irenaeus  assigns  the  same  ground  for  the  unbeUef  of 
the  Jews. 

*>  C.  Cels,  i.  55  ;  0pp.  i.  370  Ben. 


xlu  I^^TIIODLCTIOX    TO    TllL 

natious.'  The  stress  is  laid  on  the  dispersion,  not  on  the  suffer- 
ing, (for  the  Christians  were  at  this  time,  witli  the  Jews,  the 
objects  of  persecution.)  The  Jew  anticipated  that  his  nation, 
not  the  Christians,  were  to  be  the  converters  of  the  world.  But 
this  was  no  fixed  opinion  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  section. 
S.  Athanasius,  archbishop  of  a  city  where  the  Jews,  even  after 
the  mutual  massacres  of  Jews  and  Romans  under  Adrian,  were 
in  considerable  numbers,  says,  that  the  Jews  inteq^reted  Is.  vii.  1 4 
of  one  of  themselves,  and  Deut.  xviii.  1 8  of  one  of  the  prophets, 
and  '  c  as  to  the  words,  "  He  was  led  as  a  sheep  to  the  slaughter," 
instead  of  learning  from  Philip,  conjecture  them  spoken  of  Esaias 
or  some  other  of  the  prophets,  which  have  been.'  In  the  dialogue 
between  S.  Gregentius,  archbishop  of  Taphar  in  Arabia  Felix,  and 
Herbau, '  a  teacher  of  the  law,'  about  A.  d.  54  2,  when  S.  Gregentius 
alleged  this  section  ^,  Herban  is  reported  to  have  expressed  him- 
self as  perplexed  between  the  declaration  of  God  by  INIoses  of 
His  Unity  and  'David  and  Isaiah  [in  this  section]  speaking 
in  truth  of  him  who  is  called  Christ.'  Benjamin  of  Nehawend, 
a  pliilosopliic  Karaite  of  much  reputation  (a.d.  800-8 20)^,  still 
believed  that  the  section  related  to  the  Messiah  f.  '  Many,'  Ibn 
Ezra  says  s,  in  the  middle  of  the  twelfth  century,  '  explained  it 
of  the  Messiah,'  on  the  authority  of  a  traditional  saying  of  the 
Rabbis.  These  then  must  have  lived  posterior  to  those  Rabbis, 
on  whose  authority  they  rested,  yet  prior  to  any  extant  author 
who  quotes  them.  Saadyah  Gaon,  at  the  revival  of  the  study  of 
Holy  Scriptui'e,  interpreted  the  whole  section  of  Jeremiah  ^ ; 
Judah  b.  Balaam  thinks  this  possible,  and  ridicules  Moses  ben 
Gecatalia's  opinion  that  it  might  be  Hezekiah  \ 

The  interpretation  which  survived  the  longest  was  that  which 
explained  of  the  Messiah  the  first  three  verses  of  the  section. 
This  also  came  to  be  objected  to.  The  great  traditional  gloss  J 
on  the  words  lii.  13,  '  The  Messiah  shall  be  "higher"  than  Abra- 
ham, "lifted  up"  above  Moses,  "loftier"  than  the  ministering 
angels,'  seemed  too  great  to  be  intei-preted  of  a  mere  man.  The 
Christians  in  theii-  disputations  with  the  Jews,  alleged  them  as 

<=  Against  Arians,  i.  55,  p.  259  Oxf.  Tr.      ^  Dial.  ii.  in  Gallandi  B.P.xi.  614. 

®   Griitz,  Geschichte  d.  Juden,  v.  203,  204;  and  Note  17.  iii,  Note  18.  ii. 

'   According  to  Yepheth  b.  Ali  (below,  pp.  19,  31). 

e  Below,  p.  43.  •»  Ibid.  '  Below,  p.  551. 

J  Abarbanel  quotes  it  from  'the  Midrash  of  R.  Tanchuma,'  p.  165.  In 
Martini's  time  it  was  in  the  Bereshith  Rabba  on  Gen.  xxviii.  10.  It  is  quoted 
from  the  Yalkut,  p.  9. 


ENGLISH    TRANSLATION.  xliii 

only  fulfilled  in  Jesus,  since  '  they  cannot  be  true,'  Abarbancl  k 
repoi-ts  tliem,  '  except  of  the  First  Cause,  who  is  loftier  than  the 
loftiest.'  Apart  from  those  who  quote  the  saying,  without 
explaining  its  meaning  1,  they  said, — 

1 .  That  the  words  did   not  mean  '  greater  than,'  but  '  great 

from  ™,'  i.e.  that  the  person  sj)oken  of  derived  his  greatness 
from  Abraham,  !Moses,  and  the  ministering  angels,  i.  e. 
that  these  assisted  him  to  his  greatness.  The  chief  writer 
who  so  explains  it,  says  that  '  the  rendering  "  above"  gave 
occasion  to  error  on  the  part  of  the  heretics  [Christians], 
pointing,  as  they  do  certainly,  to  the  Godhead  of  the 
Messiah.' 

2.  One,  held  in  great  respect,  said  that  the  angels  were  the 

Rabbis  °. 

3.  Abarbauel  admits  that  the  Rabbis  did  mean  to  explain  the 

verse  of  the  Messiah «,  but  only  as  applying  to  it  the 
traditions  which  they  had  received  respecting  the  Messiah, 
without  supposing  it  to  be  its  meaning  p.  Another  quotes 
a  saying  of  '  our  doctors  <i,' '  Men  do  not  reply  to  a  Hagga- 
dah,'  though  why  he  should  call  it  so  I  know  not.  Another 
says  that  '  whatever  justice  there  may  be  in  expressions 
of  our  wise  men,  they  are  allegorical  r.' 

4.  Others  say  boldly  that  '  the  just  and  pei-fect  man  is  every 

way  superior  to  the  angels  s.' 

5.  Ibn  Kaspi  (a.d.  1280-1340),  an  ardent  admirer  of  Maimo- 

nides  and  'a  gifted  fanatic  for  philosophic  thought*,* 
parted   with    it  altogether,  and    said   '  that   those   who 

^  Below,  p.  156. 

'  Rashi  (who  had  only  heard  of  it),  p.  39 ;  Joseph  Kara  [early  in  twelfth 
century]  (p.  41),  Abraham  b.  Judah  Chazan  (p.  314),  both  referring  it  to 
Israel. 

™  Isaac  Eliyyah  Cohen  (pp.  138,  139)  is  followed  by  the  unknown  writer 
xxxiv.  (p.  230).  Abarhanel  rejected  it  as  not  agreeing  with  the  words  of  the 
JMidrash,  as  did  Isaac  Araraa,  a.d.  149?  (quoted  by  Lanyado,  p.  299),  and 
Lanyado  (pp.  297-300). 

■"  En  Bonet  (Yedayah  ha  Penini,  a.d.  i  298 ;  Wolf,  i.  n.  677)  in  Abarbanel, 
p.  154,  rejected  by  Abai'banel  (ibid.)  and  Lanyado  (p.  299). 

0  Pp.  165-168.  P  P. 163. 

•J  Mosheh  Cohen,  p.  124;  so  Chaiim  b.  Musa,  p.  386. 

"■  Abraham  Farissol  (p.  223). 

s  !Moses  de  Coucy  (in  Lipmann,  p.  15 1), '  with  whom  common  sense  agrees' 
(Lipmann,  ibid.),  as  indeed  the  Talmud  says  of  the  righteous  or  Israel  as  a 
whole;  Moses  b.  Nachraan  (pp.84,  85,  and  notes). 

'  Griitz,  vii.  340-345. 


xhv  INTllODUCTlOIy    TO   THE 

expounded  the  section  of  the  Messiah  gave  occasion  to  the 
heretics  to  interpret  it  of  Jesus".'     Fassani  objects  '^'to 
bringing   the   ]\lidrash    into   the   text;'    and    says   that 
'  Scripture  never  bears   any  other  than  the  simple  and 
natural  meaning ;  a  different  supposition  would  not  allow 
us  to  reply  to  Epicunis'  [the  Christian]. 
6.  A  few  onlyw,  on  the  ground  of  it,  continued  to  explain  the 
whole  section  of  the  Messiah  ;  one,  who  speaks  glowingly 
of  its  meaning,  thinks  that  the  section  '  relates  at  once 
to  the  ^Messiah  and  any  righteous  onc^.' 
Those,  however,  who  would  explain  the  section  of  the  Messiah 
were  met  by  the  gi'eat  paradox  of  prophecy  beforehand,  '  How 
can  the  same  be  put  to  death  and  prolong  his  days  and  reign?' 
Hence  Moses  b.  Nachman  supposed  a  readiness  only  to  die  y ; 
Ibn  Crispin,  of  nearness  to  death  ^ ;    Herz  Homberg,  of  their 
'device  to  slay  him 8^;'  and  the  Rabbis  explained  the  last  verse 
of  Moses ^,  although  (as  Moses  Elsheikh  hiutsc)  they  thereby 
contracted  an  obligation  not  easily  discharged,  of  connecting  it 
with  what  preceded.    Moses  Elsheikh  himself  follows  the  unani- 
mous opinion  of  our  Rabbis  ^,  in  interpreting  the  section  of  the 
Messiah,  yet  so  great  was  felt  to  be  the  difficulty  of  admitting 
the  death  of  the  Messiah,  that  he  extended  the  interpretation,  as 
to  Moses,  to  all  the  verses  which  spoke  of  death  e. 

From  this  difficulty  they  Avere  freed  as  soon  as  they  could 
satisfy  themselves  to  interpret  the  prophecy  of  any  class  of  men, 
some  of  whom  had  died,  or  of  any  one  man  excejit  Jesus.  The 
exaltation  could  be  relegated  to  the  future.  Of  the  many 
interpretations  suggested,  that  which  explained  it  of  themselves 
was  too  flattering  to  national  feeling  not  to  be  extensively 
adopted.  It  might  naturally  have  become  universal,  but  for  its 
unsatisfactoriness. 

The  new  interpretation  began  with  Rashi.     Rashi's  authority 

n  Ibn  Danan,  p.  203.  "  P.  406. 

w  Moses  b.  Nachman  (p.  78),  Ibn  Crispin  (pp.  92,  100),  Astruc  (p.  129). 
So  also  Levi  b.  Gershom  and  R.  Liwa  of  Prague  on  lii.  13  (p.  568).  Ibn 
Danan  supposed  that  the  section  alluded  to  the  Messiah  covertly  (p.  203)  by 
a  secret  and  hidden  interpretation  (p.  215). 

»  De  Marini,  pp.  324,  325.  y  Pp.  82,  83. 

^   Pp.  110,  113,  X14.     They  introduce  actual  deaths  of  Israel,  pp.82,  iii. 

*  P.  403.  He  adds,  '  Not  actually  kill  him,  else  how  should  he  see  seed, 
have  long  days  &c.  ? '  Saadyah  ibn  Danan  is  obliged  to  interpret  the  words  of 
•  nearness,  willingness,  purpose,'  as  to  llezekiah,  pp.  211,  212,  214. 

''  See  pp.  8,  10.  «  P.  270.  ^  Pp.  258-274.         o  Pp.  269-279. 


ENGLISH    TRANSLATION.  xlv 

is  put  forward  by  some  who  followed  him,  with  Ibn  Ezra,  J.  and 
D.  Kimchi,  who  were  later  than  he,  but  no  one  before  him.  His 
great  Talmudical  studies,  which  seem  to  have  been  his  earliest 
occupation,  did  not  sug2;est  it.  On  the  contrary,  in  his  notes  on 
the  Talmud  he  followed  the  older  tradition.  In  that  graphic 
story f,  in  which  Joshua  b.  Levi  is  reported  to  have  made  divers 
enquiries  of  Elias  and  Simeon  b.  Yochai  as  to  the  coming  of  the 
Messiah,  and  Avas  told  to  ask  himself,  and  that  he  would  find 
him  sitting  at  the  gates  of  Rome  among  the  poor  who  bare 
(v31D)  sicknesses,  Eashi  explains  the  words  '  bearers  of  sick- 
nesses' by  reference  to  this  section  of  Isaiah.  'Bearers  of  sick- 
nesses, i.e.  stricken  (D''yjJD),  and  he  too  is  stricken  (yJ3D),  as  it 
is  written,  "  And  he  was  wounded  for  our  iniquities,"  and  it  is 
written,  "  And  our  sicknesses  he  bare."  '  But  if  Rashi  wrote  his 
commentary  after  a.  D.  1096^,  the  hideous  massacre  of  Jews  in 
Spire,  Worms,  Maintz,  Cologne,  by  the  wild  profligate  swarm 
which  gathered,  after  the  first  Crusaders  were  gone^,  might  well 
have  occasioned  it.  '  Before  the  time  of  the  first  Crusade,  the 
Jews  in  Germany'  (says  their  learned  apologist  and  historian  i, 
who  counts  as  oppression  any  disparity  of  condition  between 
them  and  any  people  among  whom  they  sojourned)  '  were  neither 
in  a  condition  of  oppression  nor  contempt,  nor  were  shut  out 
from  holding  landed  property.'  In  what  has  been  called  '  the 
iron  age  of  Judaism  J,' there  was  too  much  occasion  for  represent- 
ing them  (a^  far  as  man  was  concerned)  as  guiltless  sufferers. 

The  interpretation  was  received  by  most  subsequent  commen- 
tators. It  would  indeed  have  been  a  strange  exception  to  the 
language  of  the  prophets,  and  of  Isaiah  himself,  who,  in  this 
later  part  of  his  book  too,  upbraids  his  people  with  their  wicked- 
ness ^  their   neglect  of  God^,  their   dulness   and   blindness  >", 

'  Sanhedrin,  dist.  cJielek,  fol.  98,  col.  i.  In  Martini,  as  printed,  fol.  281, 
the  [  ]  are  not  extended  so  as  to  include  all  which  is  now  attributed  to  Rashi. 

^  Gratz  places  the  birth  of  Rashi  in  the  year  when  the  last  Gaon  was  put 
to  death  by  the  Sultan,  a.d.  104b  (vi.  70  and  9).  Rashi  died  at  75.  He 
lived  then  nineteen  years  after  these  wickednesses. 

^  Albertus,  Hist.  Hieros.  i.  1 26-1 29,  quoted  by  Griitz,  vi.  393.  The  bishop 
of  Spire  and  archbishop  of  Maintz  tried  in  vain  to  defend  the  Jews. 

'  Gratz,  vi.  90,  where  he  describes  their  independent  condition  at  Spire 
granted  by  the  bishop  and  confirmed  by  the  emperor  Henry  IV. 

J  Milman,  Hist,  of  the  Jews,  t.  iii,  b.  .24. 

k  xliii.  24,  1. 1,  Ivii.  3-13,  lix.  2-15,  Ixiii.  17,  Ixiv.  5,  6  [Heb.,  6,  7  Eng.] 

'  xliii.  22,  23,  Ixv.  3,  7,  II,  Ixvi.  17. 

™  xlii.  19,  20,  Ivi.  10-12. 


xlvi  INTRODUCTION    TO    THE 

hypocrisy",  idolatries,  and  disobedience",  and  who  tells  them, 
•PYour  iniquities  have  s(>parated  between  you  and  your  God' — 
it  would  have  been  a  strange  contradiction  had  he,  in  the  midst 
of  this,  described  them  as  God's  righteous  servant,  who  should 
bear  the  sins  of  all  the  world  besides ;  (Christians  and  Moham- 
medans, as  they  say,  Edom  and  Ishmael ;)  and  that  we,  when 
converted,  upon  their  prosperity  and  our  own  overthrow,  at  the 
coming  of  their  Messiah,  should  own  that  they  suffered  in  our 
stead,  the  just  for  the  unjust,  and  atoned  for  \is.  It  is  strangely 
contrary  to  their  solution  of  other  prophecies,  or  of  the  disajjpoint- 
ment  of  their  own  expectations,  which  point  to  an  earlier  coming 
of  the  ]\Iessiah  during  the  time  of  the  Second  Temple,  viz.  that 
his  coming  was  delayed  by  their  sins,  that  he  would  come  if  they 
repented  i. 

However,  this  enabled  them  without  scruple  to  accept  all  the 
most  characteristic  parts  of  the  literal  interpretation.  They 
interpreted  of  Christians  the  disbelief  in  their  mission ;  they  put 
in  our  mouths  the  confession,  that  they  bore  the  sufferings  which 
we  deserved,  while  we  thought  them  afHicted  by  God  ;  that  the 
sufferer  described  [themselves]  grew  up  in  the  presence  of  God, 
as  a  root  out  of  the  dry  ground,  invisibly  supported  by  Him ; 
that  he  was  despised  and  rejected  ;  that  his  countenance  Avas  so 
marred  as  scarce  to  retain  the  human  form ;  that  he  [i.  e.  some 
Israelites]  actually  suffered  (as  martyrs,  some  said,  for  the  true 
faith  in  God) ;  that  he  [i.  e.  such  of  them]  actually  suffered 
death,  and  was  [were]  buried  with  the  i-ich ;  that  kings  [i.  e.  such 
as  should  live  at  the  coming  of  the  Messiah]  should  acknowledge 
him  ;  that  he  should  intercede  for  the  transgressors.  About  all 
this  there  is  no  question.  Indeed,  such  is  the  force  of  the 
prophet's  words,  that  the  right  faith  is,  by  God's  good  provi- 
dence, often  embalmed  in  their  paraphrases,  and  their  language 
would  often  express  our  belief,  if  we  substituted  the  name  of 
'  Jesus'  for  '  Israel.' 

What  is  meant  by 'vicarious  suffering'  is  matter  of  comment; 
and,  in  this,  they  vary  among  themselves,  and,  of  course,  differ 

"  xlviii.  I,  2,  Ivii.  3-5,  Ixi.  8,  Ixv.  5,  Ixvi.  3. 

°  xlviii.  18,  19,  L\v.  2,  Ixvi.  4.  P  lix.  2. 

1  '  For  our  iniquities,  which  have  been  many,  those  of  the  years  have  passed, 
which  have  passed'  (Sanhedrin,  Chelek,  fol.  97,  col.  i,  1.  ult.)  'For  our 
iniquities  the  Messiah  came  not  at  the  end  of  the  4000  years'  (Rashi,  ibid.; 
Martini,  ff.  315,  316  ;  Abodah  Zara,  fol.  9,  col.  i  med.)  In  Edzardi,  Abodah 
Zara,  pp.  65,  66,  and  244,  246. 


ENGLISH    TRANSLATION.  xlvii 

from  us.  They  cannot,  as  Jews,  accept  the  belief,  imperfectly 
held  by  theii'  own  forefathers,  that  One  suffered  for  us  as  the 
propitiation  for  our  sins.  But  the  Death,  the  Vicariousness  of 
the  Sufferings,  and  the  Intercession  they  do  believe.  It  will  set 
this  before  the  eyes,  to  concentrate  their  sayings  on  these  three 
subjects, — the  actual  death,  the  vicariousness,  the  intercession, — 
scattered  over  these  571  pages'". 

Amid  this  amount  of  agreement,  the  objections  of  Jewish 
controversialists  to  its  being  a  prophecy  of  Jesus,  proceed, /or 
the  most  j^a^'t,  upon  renderings  of  the  Hebrew,  identical  with 
ours.  The  literal  meaning  of  the  words  is  assumed,  and  this  is 
alleged  to  be  incompatible  with  the  history  of  Jesus  or  with  the 
Christian  belief  in  regard  to  Him. 

If  the  facts  of  the  Gospel  had  been  untnie,  if  Jesus  had  not 
risen  again,  nor  were  living  and  reigning  now,  then  this  prophecy 
of  Isaiah  would,  as  they  urge,  not  have  belonged  to  Him,  since 
the  subject  of  the  prophecy  was  to  '  prolong  his  days  s,'  to  be 
'  exalted  exceedingly  t,'  to  '  reign  ",'  '  intercede  '  abidingly  '  for 
transgressors.'  Jewish  controversialists  could  not  but  assume 
the  nntnith  of  the  Gospel  history  (for  if  they  had  believed  the 
Resurrection,  they  must  have  believed  in  Jesus).  But  this  is 
not  a  question  as  to  the  literal  meaning  of  the  words  of  the 
prophecy ;  the  objections  presuppose  the  same  interpretation  of 
the  words. 

Nor  would  the  prophecy  agree  with  our  faith,  unless  our 
Lord  had  been  '  perfect  Man,  of  a  reasonable  soul  and  human 
flesh  subsisting.'  If,  according  to  the  Apollinarlan  heresy,  as  is 
often  repeated  or  implied  by  the  Jewish  controversialists  ^,  His 

"■  See  Note  at  the  end  of  these  Remarks,  p.  Isvi  sqq. 

5  '  What  will  be  the  meaning  of  "  prolonging  of  days  "  which  is  untrue  of 
him?'  Ibn  Ezra  (below,  p.  43),  Kimchi  (p.  55).  80  R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben  (p.  60), 
Moses  b.  Nachnian  (p.  84),  Ibn  Shaprut  (p.  93),  Lipmann  (p.  149),  Abarbanel 
(p.  161),  Troki  (p.  244),  Scgre  (p.  360),  Meir  b.  Shim'on  (p.  376),  Mordekhai 
(p.  381),  Moses  Sal.  (p.  383),  Ibn  Musa  (p.  387),  Milchamoth  Adonai  (p.  388), 
Buch.  d.  Verz.  (p.  399),  Orobio  (p.  470),  Aaron  b.  Joseph  (p.  571). 

*  'Jesus  was  not  lifted  up,  except  upon  the  cross,'  Kimchi  (p.  55),  Ibn 
Crispin  (p.  loi),  Abarbanel  (pp.  158,  159),  Troki  (p.  243),  Naphthali  Alt- 
schuler  (p.  318),  Lopez  (pp.  343,  344),  Meir  b.  Shim'on  (pp.  375,  377); 
J  'this  Messiah  of  theirs  is  nowhere,'  Mordekhai  (p.  381). 

"  Moses  b.  Nachman  (p.  84),  Ibn  Ezra  (p.  43),  Milchamoth  Adonai  (p.  390). 

"  It  is  said  by  Moses  Cohen,  '  You  yourselves  maintain  that  his  soul  was 
the  Godhead  within  him'  (p.  122):  'how  can  you  say  that  his  soul  died  at 
all,  when,  according  to  your  creed,  it  was  not  his  soul  (i.  e.  his  Divinity) 
which  was  afflicted  by  death,  but  only  his  body?'  (p.  124.)    '  They  next  have 


xlviii  INTRODUCTION    TO    THE 

Godhead  had  been  to  Him  in  the  place  of  a  soul,  the  objections 
would  have  been  valid,  that — 

1.  'Whereas  he  whom  the  prophecy  describes,  should  under- 

stand, "  the  body  cannot  understand  x."  ' 

2.  'If  he  is  God  [and  not  man],  to  whom  could  he  intercede y  ? ' 

3.  '  How  could  it  be  considered  as  a  future  fact  that  he  should 

be  exalted?    Is  not  the  Godhead  always  exalted 2?' 

4.  '  How  can  he  be  first  in  a  state  of  depression  a? ' 

5.  '  How  can  it  be   said  that  he  will  understand,  since  the 

Godhead  always  imdcrstaudslJ  ?'' 

6.  'How  does  his  receiving  a  reward  agree  with  his  nature c?' 

'  Need  the  Almighty  be  reassured  by  such  promises  ^  ? ' 

7.  'If  he  is  God,  he  could  not  be  a  servant ^  V 

8.  '  How  could  it  be  said  of  him,  that  he  did  no  violence,  since 

God  could  not  do  itH' 

9.  'How  can  God  be  termed  despised,  forlorn  of  men,  and 

stricken  s?' 

to  admit  that  this  intelligence  of  his  is  what  they  call  the  Father'  (Lipmann, 
p.  148).  '  How  should  trespass  be  attributed  to  his  soul,  i.  e.  to  his  pure  and 
absolute  Godhead  ?'  (Abarbanel,  p.  161.)  'It  can  only  apply  to  his  soul ;  in 
other  words,  to  the  Godhead'  (Lopez,  p.  343).  'If  he  was  God,  both  in 
body  and  spirit,  he  could  not  be  termed  servant'  (Meir  b.  Shim'on,  p.  377). 
It  is  implied  in,  '  It  is  taught  in  your  religion  that  only  his  flesh  underwent 
death '  (Ibn  Sliaprut,  p.  94).  '  If  they  say  that  he  is  termed  a  servant  in 
respect  to  his  body  ;  God,  in  respect  to  his  nature  as  a  spirit '  (Troki,  p.  243)  ; 
'  the  travail  of  his  soul  is  an  unsuitable  expression,  for  you  hold  that  his 
Divinity  never  endured  travail  or  suffering,  but  only  his  manhood '  (Lopez, 
p.  349).  '  How  could  it  be  stated  with  any  propriety  of  the  Almighty,  that 
he  was  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of  life?'  (Mordekhai,  pp.  380,  381.)  *How 
can  the  expression  "  makes  his  soul  a  trespass-offering  "  be  in  any  way  appli- 
cable to  God?'  (Ibn  Musa,  pp.  387,  388.) 

*  Ibn  Ezra  (p.  43),  Ibn  Crispin  (p.  loi),  Lipmann  (p.  14S),  Abarbanel 
(p.  159),  Lopez  (p.  343). 

y  Kimchi  (p.  56),  Troki  (p.  244),  Lopez  (p.  349). 

'^  R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben  (p.  58),  Ibn  Shaprut  (p.  93),  Ibn  Crispin  (p.  101), 
Abarbanel  (p.  151).  "  R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben  (p.  58). 

^  Ibn  Shaprut  (p.  94),  Abarbanel  (p.  158). 

•=  Lipmann  (p.  149),  Lopez  (p.  348).  ^  Mordekhai  (p,  381). 

e  R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben  (p.  60),  Joseph  B'khor-Shor  (p.  71),  Ibn  Shaprut 
(p.  93):  '  In  their  theory  of  the  Trinity,  this  man  was  of  the  substance  of  the 
Creator ;  how  could  he  be  called  his  own  servant  ?'  Ibn  Crispin  (pp.  100,  101), 
Moses  Cohen  (p.  121),  Lipmann  (p.  148),  Abarbanel  (p.  159),  Troki  (p.  243), 
Naphthali  Altschuler  (p.  318),  Lopez  (p.  343),  Segre  (p.  358),  Meir  b.  Shim'on 
(PP-  375>  377)>  Ibn  Musa  (p.  388),  Buch.  d.  Verz.  (p.  398),  Aaron  b.  Joseph 

(P-  571)- 

'  Joseph  b.  Nathan  (p.  71). 

e  Lipmann  (p.  148),  Ibn  Shaprut  (p.  94),  Nizzachon  vet.  (p.  90). 


ENGLISH   TRANSLATION.  xlix 

10.  'If  he  is  smitten  by  God,  how  can  it  be  said  that  he  himself 

is  God h?' 

11.  'If  the  Lord  laid  upon  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all,  then  he  is 

inferior  to  God  the  agent  K' 

12.  'If  God  bi-uised  him,  he  is  inferior  to  God'.' 

13.  'If  he  were  God,  it  could  not  be  said,  The  pleasure  of  the 

Lord  shall  prosper  in  his  hand,  since  it  would  then  be 
God's  own  hands  k.' 

14.  'The  Eternal  could  not  undergo  change  or  death  1.' 

Or  it  would  not  have  been  true,  that  God  '  laid  upon  him  the 
iniquities  of  us  all,'  were  our  faith,  that  He  died  for  original  sin 
only  m ; 
Or  that  there  was  no  taking  away  sin  before  »  ; 
Or  that  those  free  from  iniquity  and  transgression  now  too  go 

down  to  Gehenna  «  ; 
Or  if  God's  promises  extend  to  those  who  wilfully  reject  themP, 
whereas  themselves  must  own  that  of  the  600,000  to  whom 
it  was  promised  that  they  should  enter  the  land  of  promise, 
all  but  two  forfeited  it,  and  God  calls  it  '  my  breach  of 
promise  1;' 
Or  if  God  could  not  be  said  to  do,  what  fulfils  His  will,  though 
done  by  bad  men  !■ ; 

•>  R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben  (p.  59),  Moses  Cohen  (p.  121).  'It  would  imply 
that  God  smote  himself,'  Lopez  (p.  346). 

'   R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben  (p.  59),  Lopez  (p.  346). 

J   R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben  (p.  59),  Ibn  Shaprut  (p.  93). 

^  Abarbanel  (p.  161),  Lopez  (p.  348).  '  If  he  was  the  Creator,  the  prophet 
would  have  said  that  his  right  arm  saved  him,'  Orobio  (p.  462). 

1  Eliyyah  Cohen  (p.  146),  Lopez  (p.  343). 

™  '  Did  he  meet  death  for  any  other  cause,  than  to  wipe  out  the  sin  of  our 
forefathers  in  having  eaten  the  tree  of  knowledge,  for  which  all  were  going 
down  to  Gehenna  ?  He  ought  rather  to  have  written,  "  For  the  transgression 
of  Adam  and  Eve  was  he  stricken," '  Joseph  b.  Nathan  (p.  71),  Christian  in 
Ibn  Shaprut  (p.  92). 

°  Nizzachon  vet.  (p.  91). 

°  Nizzachon  (p.  91),  'Died  for  the  redemption  of  souls  who  were  in 
Gehenna.'    Lopez  (p.  341). 

P  '  If  he  makes  an  atonement  for  those  who  do  not  receive  him  as  God, 
how  can  he  carry  their  sicknesses  ?  How  can  Israel  declare  that  "  the  Lord 
laid  on  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all,"  if  those  who  do  not  believe  in  his  affliction 
derive,  as  the  Nazarenes  also  admit,  no  advantage  from  it  ? '  NaphthaU  Alt- 
schuler  (p.  319),  Orobio  (pp.  463,  464,  466).  '  Israelites  are  not  saved  by 
him  at  all,'  Anonymous,  t.  (p.  397),  Orobio  (pp.  463,  464). 

1  Num.  xiv.  34. 

■"  '  Instead  of  saying  that  he  was  smitten  of  God,  he  should  rather  have 
said,  that  he  was  smitten  of  men,  as  was  the  fact,'  R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben  (p.  59), 

d 


1  INTRODUCTION    TO    THE 

Or  if  the  forgiveness  of  sin  involves  the  removal  of  all  temporal 

consequences. 

Other  objections  apply  equally,  whatever  be  the  subject,  and 
to  their  own  explanations  also,  as,  that  it  is  a  contradiction 
that  '  the  same  should  be  fair  and  marred  ^ ;' — at  different  times, 
of  course. 

Abstract  arguments — as  that  the  Incarnation  is  impossible  * ; 
or  against  the  doctrine  of  the  Atonement" ;  or  that  Jesus,  if  the 
Messiah,  ought  to  have  removed  temporal  death ;  or  to  liave 
repaired  Adam's  sin  entirely  ;  or  that  mankind  ought  to  have 
been  sinless  afterwards  ^' ;  or  that  the  Atonement  is  an  en- 
couragement to  sin  ^^ — are  irrelevant  to  this  prophecy,  or  pre- 
suppose the  same  meaning  of  its  words.  The  ignorant  criticisms 
upon  our  Lord's  teaching  ^,  or  flippancy  in  which  they  sometimes 
indulge  >',  are  still  less  relevant. 

The  argument  from  the  context  is  also  obviously  not  an 
argument  from  language.  It  excludes  the  Messiah  from  being 
the  subject  of  the  glories  at  the  close  of  chap,  lii,  as  much  as 
from  the  humiliation  in  the  greater  part  of  chap.  liii.  It  involves 
also  a  denial  that  the  prophets  spoke  of  any  Messiah  at  all. 
For  plainly  a  mention  of  the  Deliverer  could  not  otherwise  be 
out  of  harmony  with  prophecies  of  the  deliverance.  It  became 
rather  a  popular  objection  2. 


Ibn  Shaprut  (p.  93).  '  If  the  Jews  only  executed  the  pleasure  of  God  in 
putting  him  to  death,  did  not  they  do  what  was  right  and  fitting?*  Segre 
(p.  359),  Orobio  (p.  471).  'It  says,  The  Lord  was  pleased  to  bruise  him, 
and  yet  they  throw  the  guilt  of  his  crucifixion  on  us;  but  if  God  in  his 
wisdom  was  pleased  through  him  to  accomplish  the  restoration  of  the  world, 
why  should  men  be  punished  for  fulfilling  his  purpose?'  Anon.  (p.  397-) 
Abarbanel  recognises  the  principle  as  to  Josiah,  '  Because  God  was  pleased 
to  bruise  him,  it  was  He,  rather  than  the  arclier,  who  caused  him  his  sickness ' 
(p.  195);  yet  as  to  our  Lord,  he  says,  '  Pleasure  is  only  used  of  what  is  done 
without  assignable  cause,  not  of  what  is  done  with  definite  purpose'  (p.  161), 
repeated  by  Lopez  (p.  348). 

'  R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben  (p.  57),  Nizzachon  (p.  90),  Ibn  Shaprut  (pp.  92,  97), 
Moses  Cohen  (p.  121),  Segre  (p.  358). 

*  Abarbanel  (p.  158). 

"  Abarbanel  (p.  157),  Segre  (p.  359),  Orobio  (c.  xxv). 

'  Orobio  (pp.  465,  466).  *  Older  Nizzachon  (p.  91). 

^  Chiefly  in  Orobio. 

y  As,  that  our  Lord  was  not  silent  before  his  persecutors,  because  he 
prayed  to  God,  Segre  (p.  360),  repeated  by  Mosheh  of  Sal.  (p.  383). 

^  It  occurs  first  in  Moses  Cohen  (p.  116),  then  in  Lipmann  (p.  147), 
Abarbanel  (p.  154),  Troki  (p.  240),  Lopez  (p.  342),  Mordekhai  (p.  379), 
Buch.  d.  Verz.  (p.  399),  Orobio  (p.  476),  Ibn  Amram  (pp.  534,  536). 


ENGLISH    TRANSLATION.  11 

These  exceptions  against  our  faith  <lo  not  touch  upon  the 
literal  meaning  of  the  words.  The  criticisms  which  would  affect 
their  meaning  arc  but  four  :  i.  That  the  word  rendered  '  grief*' 
is  only  used  in  Holy  Scripture  of  bodily  ailment,  and  is  not  used 
metaphorically.  2.  That  the  word  rendered  'on  him^'  jg  plui-al, 
and,  being  plural,  proves  that  the  subject,  elsewhere  throughout 
the  section  spoken  of  in  the  singular,  must  be  a  virtual  plural, 
i.  e.  a  collective,  not  an  individual.  3,  Some  make  the  same 
inference  from  the  use  of  the  plural,  lit.  '  deaths  «.'  4.  That  the 
word  '  seed  '^ '  is  never  used  metaphorically,  but  always  of  the 
physical  descendants  of  a  person. 

Obj.  I.  'You  will  not  find  in  your  own  New  Testament,  that 
your  Messiah  ever  had  a  pain,  even  a  head-ache,  up  to  the  day 
of  his  death  :  the  very  terms  here  employed,  "  pain  "  and  "  sick- 
ness," were  not  realised  in  his  person,  and  so  cannot  apply  to 
him.'  Ans.  Isaiah  does  use  the  w^ord  in  this  very  section  of 
mental  ills  (not  actual  sicknesses),  and  of  the  sufferings  laid 
upon  the  person  spoken  of  in  it.  'Our  sicknesses  he  boreV 
whereas  one  cannot  bear  the  actual  bodily  ailments  of  another ; 
and,  '  It  pleased  the  Lord  to  bruise  him  :  he  hath  put  him  to 
grief V  both  of  which  manifestly  refer  to  the  fu-st,  'acquainted 
with  grief.'  It  is  also  so  used  in  the  opening  of  Isaiah ?J,  and  else- 
where \  as  are  other  derived  forms ;  as,  contrariwise,  '  healing ' 
is  used  with  regard  to  mind  or  estate.  It  is  probably  a  metaphor 
of  all  language,  as  being,  from  the  relation  of  mind  and  body, 
the  language  of  nature.  Indeed,  the  objection  would  not  have 
been  worth  noticing,  but  for  the  positiveness  of  those  who  use  it, 
and  that  Abarbanel  and  the  author  of  the  ''^''  moriPD  are  among 
those  who  make  it.  Those  who  interpret  the  section  of  the 
people  often  rejjcat  that  it  relates  to  '  the  sufferings  of  exile  i : ' 
one  notices  that  mental  pains  are  far  more  grievous  than  bodily. 

a  ••'?n  liii.  2.  b  to"?  liii.  8.  «=  vnoa  liii.  9. 

•1  R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben  (p.  59).  Ho  is  followed  by  Ibn  Shaprut  (pp.  93, 
97),  Abarbanel  (p.  160),  Isaac  Lopez  (p.  345),  Moses  of  Salerno  (p.  382), 
MiJchamoth  Adonai  (p.  389). 

®  liii.  4.  '  'brin  liii.  10.  «  Is.  i.  5. 

•^  Hos.  V.  13,  Jer.  vi.  7,  x.  19,  Eccl.  v.  16,  vi.  2;  the  verb.  Is.  Ivii.  10, 
Jer.  V.  3  ;  part.,  Eccl.  v.  12,  13;  Nif.,  Am.  ri.  6,  Is.  xvii.  11,  Jer.  xxx.  12  ; 
Hif.,  Prov.  xiii.  12.  Abarbanel  himself  notices  that  it  is  used  of  Josiah's 
mortal  wound,  2  Chron.  xxx  v.  23  (and  so  not  of  continuous  sickness  or  sick- 
nesses), p.  195. 

'  See  e.  g.  Troki  (pp.  244,  245,  254),  Ibn  Ezra  (p.  45);  quoted  by  Abar- 
banel (p.  174). 

d  2 


Hi  INTRODUCTION    TO    THE 

Obj.  2.  '107/  they  say,  i.  is  a  plural ;  and,  2.  being  a  plural, 
it  must  relate  to  the  subject  of  the  section,  and  so  shews  that 
the  subject  must  be  a  collective,  not  an  individual.  Ans.  i.  There 
is  no  ground  to  assume  that  ^u?  is  a  plural ;  nor,  2.  if  it  were 
assumed  to  be  so,  does  anything  require  that  it  should  be  under- 
stood of  the  subject  of  the  section. 

I.  Witli  regard  to  ID?  being  necessarily  a  jilural,  Kimchi,  who 
originated  the  argument,  at  another  time  denied  it.  In  hi.s 
challenge  to  the  Nazarcnes  he  says  \  '  Moreover  the  prophet  says 
"to  them"  (id?);  but  then  [if  it  related  to  Jesus]  he  ought  to 
have  said  to  him,  "17  ;  for  1D7  is  plural,  being  equivalent  to  Dn?.' 
In  his  Grammar  he  says  1,  '  ID  occurs  as  the  affix  of  the  3rd  j^crson 
singular,  as  in  Job  xx.  23,  xxii.  2.'  'For  D  and  1  [id]  contains 
in  itself  the  sign  of  the  plural  noun,  and  indicates  the  masc.  sing, 
also.  For  D  is  the  sign  of  the  3rd  person  masc.  plural,  and  the 
1  of  the  3rd  masc.  sing. ;  and  therefore  ID  is  used  both  of  many 
and  of  one.'  L'Empereur  observed,  that  the  Chaldee  version 
and  the  LXX  also  render  Job  xxii.  2  in  the  sing. ;  and  Levi  b. 
Gershoni  and  Meir  b.  Aramah  so  render  it  in  Job  xx.  In  Ps. 
xi.  7,  'the  [LXX  and]  Chaldee  render  it  in  the  sing.  ;  in  Is.  xliv. 
15,  the  Chaldee  again  [the  LXX  is  missing];  in  Job  xxvii.  23, 
Ibn  Ezra  and  Levi  b.  Gershom  so  explain  it.'  Abraham  Farissol"', 
on  this  place,  prefers  the  singular  :  '  ID?  will  then  be  singular  for 
V,  as  Ps.  Iv.  20  and  often.'  R.  Judah  b.  Bala'm°  [eleventh  cen- 
tury], '  By  ID?  he  means  17,  i.  e.  that  his  misfortune  came  to  him 
from  the  sin  of  the  people,  not  what  he  deserved  himself.' 
R.  Tanchumo  gives  the  choice  of  its  being  singular  (which  he 
places  first)  or  plural.  Naphthali  Altschuler  has, '  For  the  trans- 
gression of  "my  people"  had  this  "stroke"  come  upon  the 
Messiah  1'.'  In  the  Milchamoth  Adonai,  it  is  admitted  as  pos- 
sible :  '  AVe  certainly  find  1D7  used  occasionally  as  a  singular, 
as  Ps.  xi.  7,  but  only  as  an  anomaly  n.'  Gershom,  though  inter- 
preting it  of  Israel,  explains  it  as  a  singular,  V?N  ■". 

Of  modern  critics,  one  who  himself  renders,  '  For  my  people's 

k  See  p.  5,!;. 

'   Pococke  quotes  this  passage  from  Kimchi's  Grammar,  f.  266.  i,  Ven.,  8vo; 
notes  on  the  Porta  Mosis,  c.  8,  on  this  section,  as  alleged  by  I'Empereur  against  ' 
Abarbanel.    Elias  on  Moses  Kimchi,  Shcbile  haddaath  (jip.  240,  241),  admits  j 
the  fact  as  to  Job  xx.  23,  xxii.  2,  but  would  limit  the  use  to  these  two  places,     j 

™  P.  225.  n  P.  551.  "  P.  556.  P  P.  322.        I 

<»  P.  389  ;  but  he  still  says,  '  Had  he  meant  Jesus,  he  ought  to  have  said  I 
"  upon  kirn."  '  "■  Hebr.  texts,  p.  397.  ' 


ENGLISH   TRANSLATION.  liii 

sill,  the  plague  for  them'/  and  says,  *1D7  corresponds  to  ^Dy,' 
himself  lays  down s,  'It  cannot  be  denied  that  the  very  old 
ID 7  is  sometimes  used  by  some  poets  in  the  sense  of  a  singular, 
in  very  little  words,  as  "ID^  for  1^  "  to  him,"  as  if  in  it  the  ^  of 
the  singular  were  especially  heard  through,  Ps,  xi.  7,  Jobxxii.  2, 
Deut.  xxxiii.  2,  twice;  Is.  xliv.  15.'     But, 

2.  In  fact,  nothing  turns  upon  it.  The  rendering,  '  for  the 
transgression  of  my  people  a  blow  came  to  them '  (whereby  the 
them  refers  to  people  in  the  same  verse),  is  just  as  natural  as 
'came  to  him.' 

If  the  word  is  rendered  '  to  them,'  the  obvious  meaning  would 
be  (as  Ewald  says)  that  it  refers  to  '  my  people'  in  the  same 
clause.  This  makes  a  complete  sense  in  itself,  without  intro- 
ducing the  anomaly,  that,  whereas  the  subject  of  this  section  is 
spoken  of  in  the  singular,  sixty  times  in  verbs  and  pronouns 
(and  three  times  in  this  very  verse),  it  is  to  be  spoken  of  once 
in  this  one  verse  in  the  plural ;  and  that  '  the  kings,'  alleged  to 
be  speaking  in  the  plural  '  we,'  '  our,'  fourteen  times  previously, 
should  in  this  one  verse  speak  in  the  singular,  '  my  people,'  i.  e. 
the  people  of  each  of  them.  This  double  anomaly  is  to  take 
place  in  four  words,  without  any  indication  in  the  context. 
Those  who  were  before  spoken  of  in  the  singular  are  to  be 
spoken  of  in  the  jilural,  and  those  spoken  of  in  the  plural  are  to 

"  Ewald  ad  loc.  Proph.  iii.  98. 

s  Ewald,  Lelirb.  §  247,  p.  625  ed.  8.  In  his  earliest  Grammar  he  said, 
•Exceedingly  probably  it  is  sing.  Job  xx.  23,  xxvii.  23,  where  the  whole  con- 
text of  ten  to  twenty  verses,  in  which  the  sing,  occurs  tliroughout,  speaks  for 
it.  But  it  is  certain  in  Is.  liii.  8,  in  which  the  sing,  alone  appears;  Is.  xliv. 
15,  where  the  plural  does  not  at  all  suit  the  sense;  and  the  poet  himself 
explains  in''?  in  the  same  connection  (ver.  17)  by  17;  Ps.  xi.  7,  where  "his 
countenance"  can  only  relate  to  God.  Hab.  iii.  4  explains  ^'ob,  Deut. 
xxxiii.  2,  by  i^.'  Krit.  Gramm.  p.  365.  Bottcher  acknowledges  the  use  of 
m  for  the  sing,  (not  in  Gen.  ix.  26,  27,  Is.  xxx.  5,  Ps.  Ixxiii.  10,  '  where,'  he 
says,  'it  might  refer  to  the  plural  meaning  of  the  collectives  in  the  context'), 
nor  in  Ps.  xxviii.  8,  or  Job  ix.  23,  but  in  Deut.  xxxiii.  2,  (as  explained  by  Hab. 
iii.  4),  Is.  xliv.  15,  Uii.  8,  Ps.  xi.  7,  Job  xxii.  2,  xxvii.  23  (Ausf.  Lehrb.  n.  878, 
2.  a,  t.  ii.  p.  28).  While  the  Aethiopic  use  of  mo  as  a  singular  seems  for 
the  time  shaken  by  Piatt's  N.  T.  (London,  1820)  and  Dillmann  (Bottcher, 
L  c.  note  6),  Phoenician  investigators  (Ewald,  Movers,  Meier,  Sclilottmann, 
Schroeder)  have  recognised  the  m  as  a  form  of  the  3rd  pers.  pron.  sing. 
Ewald  (ZKM.  iv.  p.  416)  and  Schroeder  (d.  Phoen.  Sprache,  p.  153,  note  i) 
have  recognised  the  ?»o  as  a  relic  of  Phoenician  in  Hebrew,  and  Schroeder 
owns  the  mo  as  existing,  beyond  question,  as  a  real  sing.,  Gen.  Lx.  26,  27, 
Deut.  xxxiii.  2,  Job  xx.  23,  xxii.  2,  xxvii.  23,  Ps.  xi.  7,  xxviii.  8,  Is.  xliv.  15, 
and  here.     Hitzig  also  maintains  that  TO?  here  is  singvdar,  p.  573. 


liv  INTRODUCTION   TO   THE 

be  spoken  of  in  the  singular.  Yet  though  this  objection  found 
eleven  adherents,  among  them  Abarbanel*,  nearly  twice  as 
many  take  the  one  or  the  other  of  the  interpretations,  by  which 
the  '  to  them'  would  refer  to  the  people,  either  as  a  continuous 
sentence,  '  for  the  transgression  of  my  [God's]  people  there  was 
a  plague  to  them  ",'  or  in  two  halves,  whereby  '  the  stroke  to 
them '   should  refer  to   '  my  people  ^ '  in  the  same  vei'se.      It 

*  The  argument  begins  with  Kimchi,  followed  by  R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben 
(p.  59).  It  is  used  in  proof  that  'it  cannot  be,  as  some  say,  in  view  of  the 
Messiah,'  by  Jacob  b.  Reuben,  Karaite  (p.  82),  Ibn  Shaprut  (p.  93),  Mosheh 
Cohen  (pp.  118,  122),  Abarbanel  (p.  163),  Abraham  of  Cordova  (p.  293), 
Lopez  (p.  347),  Mordckhai  (p.  381),  JVIanasseh  b.  Israel  (p.  446),  Orobio 
(p.  511),  (yet  referring  m'j  to  'my  people'  in  the  same  verse  (p.  513),  and 
rendering  in  the  sing,  for  clearness.)  It  is  not  used  by  Lipmann  (p.  149), 
nor  by  Meir  b.  Shim'on  (p.  375),  and  Rashi  apparently  refers  the  '  to  them ' 
to  '  the  people '  in  the  same  verse  ;  '  for  the  transgression  of  his  people,  the 
stroke  of  exile  had  fallen  iqwn  the  just  who  were  among  them'  (p.  58). 

"  Symmachus,  '■He  was  cut  off,  and  for  the  injustice  of  my  people  there 
was  a  plague  upon  them'  (p.  2).  Theodotion,  '  J/e  was  cut  off,  on  account 
of  the  defection  of  my  people  he  touched  them'  (ibid.)  Jonathan,  ^  Ue  will 
cause  &c.  and  transfer  to  them  the  sins  which  my  people  have  committed' 
(p.  6).  Saadyah  Gaon,  '  He  was  cut  off,  and  for  the  transgression  of  ray 
people  the  stroke  was  upon  them'  (p.  18).  So  the  Persian  version  verbatim.  Ibn 
Ezra  (as  the  more  correct), '  For  the  transgression  of  my  people  the  stroke 
will  come  upon  them  [the  nations],'  (p.  46  and  note.)  In  Ibn  Shaprut 
(p.  98)  the  Christian's  rendering,  '  Because  the  murderous  blow,  wreaked 
upon  him,  is  a  blow  for  them,'  i.  e.  '  they  will  be  in  perpetual  exile'  (p,  97), 
is  not  excepted  against,  although  the  argument  is.  Abarbanel,  '  For  the 
transgression  of  my  people'  (which  was  the  cause  of  his  [Josiah's]  death) 
'  the  stroke  came  upon  them,'  viz.  upon  Israel  themselves,  because  it  was 
they  who  were  '  stricken'  by  his  death  even  more  than  he  himself  (p.  195). 
Ibn  Danan,  'The  prophet  says,  "a  stroke  upon  them,"  because  the  boil 
from  which  he  suffered  would  have  injured  them  still  more,  had  he  died 
from  it'  (p.  212).  Farissol  gives  this  as  a  second  alternative,  having  pre- 
ferred the  singular  (p.  225).  Mosheh  Elsheikh,  'Hitherto  the  just  one  had 
been  stricken  for  the  people's  transgression,  but  henceforth  the  stroke  would 
be  upon  themselves'  (p.  269).  Lanyado,  '  From  that  moment,  for  the  trans- 
gression of  my  people  the  stroke  was  to  fall  upon  them,  i.  e.  upon  my  people, 
and  not  upon  the  righteous,  as  it  had  before,  when  they  were  suflering  for  it' 
(p.  309).  '  He  was  cut  off — for  the  sin  of  many  people  [tribe],  plague  [sick- 
ness] came  upon  him,'  Tataric  version.  Marini,  'For  the  transgression  of  my 
people,  there  is  a  stroke  upon  them,'  (viz.  upon  my  people,  for  he  adds)  '  a 
saying  which  is  the  reverse  of  Zeph.  iii.  6,  7 '  (p.  335).  The  Christian  in  Segre 
(p.  357)  rendered,  'For  the  transgression  of  his  people,  there  was  a  stroke 
upon  them.'    Segre  does  not  make  it  one  of  his  ten  objections  (pp.  358-360). 

"  Yei>heth  b,  Ali,  '  All  this  trouble  came  upon  him  because  of  the  trans- 
gression of  my  people,  for  whom  this  stroke  was,  i.  e.  who  deserved  it ' 
(p.  27).  Anon,  xvi,  '  When  my  people  abandons  the  transgression  which 
has  lighted  upon  them*  (p.  65).     Anon,  xvii,  '  He  seemed  to  have  been  cut 


ENGLISH   TRANSLATION.  Iv 

apparently  became  a  traditional  objection,  used  without  much 
thought ;  for  Abarbanel,  when  interpreting  the  section  of  an 
individual  [Josiah],  and  Mordekhai  do  not  themselves  under- 
stand the  to  them  to  refer  to  the  subject  of  the  section. 

Obj.  3.  The  argument  that  DTID,  'his  death,'  should  be  rendered 
'  deaths,'  and  so  implies  that  the  subject  of  the  section  is  not  one, 
but  many,  is  used  by  Lipmann ^ :  '  Observe, he  does  not  say  "death," 
but  "  deaths ;"  yet  a  single  man  cannot  die  more  than  once.'  Ans. 
There  is  no  ground  to  lay  any  emphasis  on  the  plural  in  DTID, 
'  death,'  any  more  than  in  D''"'n,  '  life.'  Many  nouns  in  Hebrew 
are  used  in  the  plural,  whei'e  we.  Westerns,  could  hardly  account 
for  it.  The  plural  is  used  of  a  condition,  as  a  period  of  life,  or  a 
condition  of  body  x.  There  is  then  no  reason  why  DTIJD  (if  there 
is  &nj  stress  on  the  plural)  should  not  mean  'the  state  of  death;' 
as  D^Tl,  'the  state  of  life.'  And  this  agrees  better  with  the 
usual  meaning  of  3,  '  in'  or  '  at.'  lu  the  only  other  case  in  which 
the  plural  occurs,  Ezek.  xxviii.  10,  it  is  used  of  an  individual, 
the  prince  of  Tyre  (ibid,  i);  and  'a  single  man  could  not'  (in 
Lipmann's  words)  'die  more  than  oncev.'  The  earlier  inter- 
preters render  in  the  singular  2.     Those  who  explain  the  section 

off  because  of  the  transgression  of  my  people,  [because  of]  the  stroke  which 
should  have  been  theirs'  (p.  69).  Mosheh  b.  Nachman,  '  He  has  been  cut 
off — for  the  transgression  of  my  people — an  event  vfhich  will  be  a  severe 
blow  to  theiii'  (p.  S2).  Ibn  Crispin,  'lob  refers  to  my  people:  from  the 
transgression  of  my  people,  (which  was)  a  blow  upon  them,  since  in  conse- 
quence of  it  many  plagues  fell  upon  them'  (p.  11 1).  Lanyado,  '  He  was  cut 
off,  and  slain  "  for  the  transgression  of  my  people," '  the  stroke  intended 
•for  them'  being  borne  by  him  instead  (of  Messiah  ben  Joseph),  (p.  302.) 
Alternative  rendering  in  Lanyado,  '  On  account  of  the  traiv^rjression  of  my 
people,  for  which  the  righteous  was  to  be  taken  away'  (p.  360).  Passani, 
'  The  attribute  of  judgment  laid  upon  him  the  iniquity  of  them  all,  as  the 
text  says,  for  the  transgression  of  my  people,  even  the  stroke  which  should 
have  fallen  upon  them'  (p.  409).  Luzzatto, ' 'ny  is  here  for  D'D5?  as  Ps. 
cxliv.  2 ;  for  the  trans'jression  of  the  peoples,  who  were  themselves  liable  to 
bear  the  stroke  which  was  borne  by  him,  id'?  yj:  which  was  a  stroke  to 
them ; '  rejecting  the  rendering,  ' a  stroke  came  upon  them'  as  what  would 
not  be  expressed  by  "j  yj:  (p.  421).  Mordekhai,  '  He  was  cut  off,  for  the 
transgressions  of  my  people,  a  stroke  to  them '  (p.  379). 

"  Lipmann  (p.  149). 

^  As  D'2pl,  age;  D'oby,  nnyj,  youth;  D'?n2,  maidenhood;  n'jlbs,  bride- 
hood,  Jer.  ii.  2;  D '  13 :n,  embalming,  Gen.  1.  3,  (Ewald,  Lehrb.  §  153  a); 
°'Tlf?,  blindness. 

y  Luzzatto,  I  see,  uses  this  expression  against  its  meaning '  death,'  in  Ezek. 
xxviii.  10,  but  does  not  say  what  other  meaning  it  can  have  (p.  422). 

*  I'noa  is  rendered  by  the  singular, '  his  death,'  by  the  Septuagint  (and 


Ivi  INTRODUCTION   TO   THK 

of  a  collective,  Israel,  of  course  understand  '  deaths'  of  the 
individuals,  who  come  under  that  collective  *.  But  no  one, 
cxcei^t  Lipmann,  uses  it  as  a  controver!<ial  argument.  Those 
who  interpret  the  section  of  an  individual,  whether  the  Messiah, 
or  Jeremiah,  or  Hezekiah,  or  Josiah,  must  cither  regard  it  as 
virtually  singular,  or  find  some  other  emphasis  for  the  plural,  or 
assign  some  other  meaning  for  the  whole  word.  If  regarded  as 
a  plural,  the  explanation  of  Herz  Homherg  (since  the  affix  is 
singular)  is  more  natural^,  'the  plural  "deaths"  is  used,  because 
piercing  him  as  cruel  men  do,  through  and  through'',  they 
would,  so  to  speak,  be  putting  him  to  death  again  and  again;' 
much  as  we  might  say,  '  a  thousand  deaths  in  one.'  The  Chris- 
tian martyrs  underwent  tortures,  each  of  which  might  have 
ended  life.  The  more  popular  explanation  among  moderns  ^  has 
been  that  suggested  by  some  before  Ibn  Ezra  ^ ;  '  building  over 
a  grave,'  Vnb3  for  1''^i^3,  which,  however,  is  a  meaning  for  which 
there  is  no  proof.  Those  who  adopted  any  of  these  interpreta- 
tions, manifestly  had  not  Lipmanu's  objection. 

there  is  no  variation  in  the  other  Greek  versions)  ;  '  the  death  of  utter 
destruction,' Jonathan  (p.  6);  'his  death,'  Saadyah  (p.  i8) ;  'in  his  dying,' 
Pers.  and  Tataric  vers.;  '  how  the  Messiah  will  resign  himself  to  die,'  Yepheth 
b.  Ali  (p.  27);  'in  his  death,'  Joseph  b.  Nathan  (p.  73)  ;  Abarbanel  (of  Josiah, 
p.  195);  Marini  (p.  335);  Lopez  (p.  352);  Mosheli  of  Salerno  (p.  383); 
Passani  (p.  410);  Tanchum  (p.  555). 

*  A  meaning  is  given  to  the  plural  by  Rashi,  '  any  form  of  death'  (p.  38) ; 
'some,'  in  Ibn  Ezra,  'of  those  who  died  in  exile'  (p.  47);  'the  plural  is 
employed,  because  they  used  to  be  put  to  death  in  many  ways,'  Kimchi 
(p.  57);  'he  will  expect  them  to  slay  him  by  stoning,  &c.  This  is  why 
Tm"D  is  plural,'  Moses  b.  Nachinan  (p.  82);  'various  kinds  of  death,'  Ibn 
Crispin  (p.  121);  'the  prophet  uses  death  in  the  plural  because  they  con- 
demned them  to  different  forms  of  punishment,'  Astruc  (p.  131);  Sh'lomo 
b.  Melech  (p.  219);  'various  kinds  of  death,'  xxxiv.  (p.  237),  Troki 
(p.  254)  ;  '  in  all  his  deaths,'  Lanyado  (p.  310)  ;  '  any  form  of  death,'  Naph- 
thali  AJtschuler  (p.  322),  Segre  (p.  365),  David  Altschuler  (p.  371)  ;  'death 
in  two  forms'  [of  his  person  and  substance],  Mordekhai  (p.  380);  'their 
various  deaths,'  Manasseh  b.  Israel  (p.  446),  Gershom  (p.  566). 

^  Herz  Homherg  (p.  404).  In  like  way  the  anonymous  I.  (p.  392),  'that 
they  were  often  put  to  death,  after  being  pierced  through  and  through,' '  after 
having  suffered  cruel  tortures'  (quoting  another  Rabbi  by  his  initials,  Z  A  B), 
and  Lanyado,  '  he  was  not  to  be  put  to  death  speedily,  but  tortured  by  every 
conceivable  method  of  producing  a  severe  and  painful  end ;  and  hence  the 
prophet  says  not  "in  his  death,"  but  "in  his  deaths'"  (p.  303). 

*  Gesenius,  Thesaurus,  p.  188;  Ewald  (Proph.  iii.  95);  Bottcher. 

^  P.  47.  'This  was  adopted  by  Jacob  b.  Reuben,  Karaite  (p.  62),  xvi. 
(p.  75),  Abarbanel  apparently  (p.  l8l);  of 'high  places,'  Saadyah  Ibn  Danan 
(p.  213). 


ENGLISH    TRANSLATION.  Ivii 

Obj.  4.  '  If  the  disciples  of  Jesus  had  been  meant,  it  should  have 
been  written  "sons;"  foi*  the  word  "seed"  only  signifies  those 
born  by  a  carnal  generation.'  Ans.  The  objection  c  is  founded 
altogether  upon  a  mistake ;  for  the  text  has  not  '  his  seed,'  but 
'  a  seed.'  This  exactly  corresponds  with  '  a  seed  shall  serve  him  ' 
of  Ps.  xxii,  following  upon  a  prophecy  like  this,  of  the  conversion 
of  the  world  :  '  All  the  ends  of  the  world  shall  remember  and 
turn  unto  the  Lord,  and  all  the  kindreds  of  the  nations  shall 
worship  before  him  f.'  '  A  seed  shall  serve  him ;  it  shall  be 
accounted  of  the  Lord  a  generation ;  they  shall  come  and  shall 
declare  his  righteousness  unto  a  people  which  shall  be  born' 
[yet  another  generation],  '  that  the  Lord  has  done '  very  mighty 
things  ff.  This  is  the  characteristic  of  the  kingdom,  that  it  should 
not  pass  away,  like  earthly  kingdoms. 

The  context  shews  who  that  seed  is.  The  prophet  says  in  the 
next  chapter,  '  Thy  (Israel's)  seed  shall  inherit  the  Gentiles  : ' 
and  of  these  the  earliest  Jewish  translators  and  commentators 
imderstood  it.  They  i-ender,  '  a  seed,'  not  '  his  seed  ;'  '  your  soul 
shall  see  a  long-lived  seed  l^ ; '  '  these  [those  cleansed  from  sin] 
shall  look  on  the  kingdom  of  the  Messiah  ;  their  sons  and  their 
daughters  shall  be  multiplied i ; '  'he  sees  a  noble  seed J.'  Later, 
*  he  shall  see  seed  and  lengthen  days '  ai'e  united,  as  expressing 
the  same  fact,  the  prolongation  of  his  life  and  prosperity  K 

•  The  objection  that '  seed '  cannot  mean  disciples  is  first  raised  by  Kinichi 
(p.  55),  followed  by  Ibn  Shaprut  (pp.  93,  98),  Moses  Cohen  (p.  123),  Lip- 
mann  (p.  149),  Abarbanel  (p.  161),  Troki  (p.  -244),  Lopez  (p.  348).  '  He  died 
unmarried  and  childless  at  thirty-tliree,'  Segre  (p.  360),  Meir  b.  Shim'on 
(p.  376),  Moses  of  Salerno  (p.  383),  Milchamoth  Adonai  (p.  390).  'How- 
can  God  have  seed?'  Buch.  d.  Verz.  (p.  399),  Ibn  Musa  (p.  387),  and  t. 
(p.  398),  Mordekhai  (p.  381),  Orobio  (p.  469),  Aaron  b.  Joseph  (p.  571). 

f  Ps.  xxii.  27.  ^  Ps.  xxii.  30,  31. 

••  LXX.,  Aq.,  Symm.,  Theod.  substitute  '  his  soul '  for '  thy  soul,'  but  leave 
the  rest  (p.  2). 

'   Jonathan  (p.  6).  J  Saadyah  Gaon  (p.  18). 

'  Yepheth  b.  Ali  (p.  28), '  I  will  pay  him  his  reward  and  he  shall  see  seed,' 
&c.,  Rashi  (p.  39).  Anon.  xvi.  has  '  shall  see  the  king '  (p.  65).  '  He  [God] 
will  heal  him  and  preserve  him  alive  ;  he  will  see  seed  and  prolong  days,  and 
the  pleasure  of  the  Lord,  i.  e.  to  do  judgment,'  Sec,  xvii.  (p.  69),  Joseph  b. 
Nathan,  as  Rashi  (p.  74);  so  Yeshayah  b.  Mali  (p.  77).  IMosheh  b.  Nachman 
explains  it  by  Ps.  xlv.  17  (p.  83).  R.  Eliyyah  Cohen  has  simply  'see  seed,' 
referring  to  Is.  Ixv.  20,  22  (p.  I45).  Jacob  b.  Reuben  (Karaite)  only  para- 
phrases it  of  prosperity  (p.  63),  as  does  David  de  Rocca  Martini  (p.  201), 
Meir  Aramah  (p.  242),  Moses  Elsheikh  (p.  272).  Lanyado  simply  quotes  as 
one  expression  of  good  pleasure,  'will  see  seed  &c. — in  his  hand'  (p.  31 1). 
Abraham  b.  Judab  Chazan, '  I  will  pay  him  a  goodly  reward,  he  shall  see  seed 


Ivill  INTRODUCTION    TO   THE 

The  objection  is  in  truth  a  mere  pressing  of  the  primary 
physical  meaning,  which  practically  becomes  obsolete.  If  dis- 
ciples, not  being  sons,  can  be  called  sons,  they  may  be  equally 
called  '  seed.'  They  ai-e  physically  neither  :  metaphorically,  they 
may  be  called  by  either  name.  *  Disciples  are  called  sons,  as  it 
is  said,  "  And  the  sons  of  the  prophets  went  out," '  says  one  to 
whom  they  are  wont  to  defer '.  '  It  becometli  man  to  take 
heed  to  and  love  his  disciples  ;  for  they  are  the  sons,  who  profit 
in  this  woi'ld  and  the  world  to  come  •".'  '  Honour  fathers  and 
the  wise  ;  for  they  are  the  parents  of  all  ".'  Isaiah  himself  uses 
the  word  in  a  bad  sense,  '  seed  of  evil-doers  [much  as  we  should 
say  "  brood  "]  corrupt  children  «;'  and  'children  of  transgression, 
seed  of  falsehood  p.'  Few  probably  would  [with  Gesenius]  think 
that  *  the  seed  of  the  serpent  i '  meant  '  the  serpent  tribe '  as 
propagated  naturally,  and  was  not  rather  like  '  the  generation  of 
vipers  ^'  of  whom  our  Lord  speaks.  Yet  in  these  cases  the  word 
stands  with  a  genitive,  '  the  seed  of : '  in  this  section,  as  in  the 
Psalm,  it  stands  absolutely,  '  a  seed.' 

In  an  old  comment ^  on  'I  will  give  it  to  thee  and  to  thy 
seed,'  it  is  said,  '  Thy  seed  are  those  like  unto  face ; '  and  the 
proselyte  is  called  '  son  of  Abraham  *,'  and  '  Whoever  confesseth 
two  worlds '  [i.  e.  this  and  that  to  come]  '  shall  be  called  thy 
seed,  and  whoever  confesseth  not  two  worlds  shall  not  be  called 
thy  seed  ".'  In  the  Yalkut  Reubeni  it  is  said,  '  I  will  grant  him 
children  of  the  law,  children  diligeut  in  the  study  and  perform- 
ance of  it  ^.' 

Kimchi  raised  the  objection  as  to  our  Lord  alone.     It  would 

and  have  long  days  ;'  as  Ezekiel  says,  '  I  will  increase  them  with  men  like  a 
flock,'  xxxvi.  37  (p.  316).  Naphthali  Altschuler  vaguely,  '  He  shall  see  seed 
in  this  present  world,  and  prolong'  his  'days  in  the  world  to  come'  (p.  322). 
The  older  Nizzachon  has  not  the  argument  (pp.  90,  91),  nor  Abraham  of 
Cordova  (p.  293),  nor  Salomo  de  Marini  (p.  337),  nor  Passani  (p.  407). 
Abarbancl  paraphrases, '  He  shall  see  the  seed  of  his  nation  much  multiplied' 
(p.  1 84). 

'  Maimonides,  Yad.  Talm.  Torah,  c.  i.  n.  2,  in  Pococke  Porta  Mosis,  c.  8, 
on  this  section.  Gesenius,  who  approves  of  the  correction  of  Maimonides, 
quotes  Schulz  (in  Paulus  Reisen  vii.  49),  as  saying  that  in  the  East,  Christians 
are  said  to  be  '  of  the  family  (j  jL^e)  of  the  Messiah,'  Gcs.  Einl.  t.  i.  p.  125. 

™  Id.  V.  12,  ibid.  °  Id.  Comm.  ad  Peah,  c.  i,  §  1,  ibid. 

"  Is.  i.  4.  P  Ibid.  Ivii.  4.  1  Gen.  iii.  15.  ■■  S.  Matt.  iii.  7. 

s  Bereshith  Rabba  major  in  Gen.  xiii.  15,  in  Martini  P.  F.  fol.  302. 

*  Massecheth  Bikkurim  Hicros.,  ibid.  fol.  303. 

°  R.  Yoden  b.  II.  Shallum  in  Bereshith  Rabba  on  Gen.  xxi.  1 2,  ibid. 

"  P.  396. 


ENGLISH   TRANSLATION.  lix 

probably  to  the  Jews  involve,  that  the  section  should  not  belonj^ 
to  the  Messiah.  For  with  their  exalted  belief  of  him,  they  could 
not  have  pictured  him  as  a  married  man  with  a  large  family ; 
still  less,  that  the  reward  of  his  suffering  should  be  to  have 
a  numerous  offsj)ring,  like  Ahab  with  his  seventy  sons. 

I  have  not  included  under  this  head  of  language  the  objec- 
tion that  '  he  was  not  cut  off  from  the  land  of  the  living,'  on  the 
ground  that  'the  land  of  the  living'  is  Judaea,  and  the  Crucifixion 
was  in  Jerusalem.  For  although  some  who  explain  the  section 
of  Israel,  do  interpret  '  the  land  of  the  living '  of  its  land  w,  this 
is  so  manifestly  an  applied  meaning,  that  Lipmann  ^  only  and 
one  follower  y  use  it  to  swell  the  list  of  objections.  On  the  other 
hand  ''•,  some  take  it  in  its  uniform  primary  sense  of  this  life,  and 
deny  it  to  be  a  fitting  saying  as  to  Almighty  God  ». 

With  regard  to  the  word  "i''C'y,  as  to  which  moderns, 
declining  to  undei'stand  '  the  rich  man '  of  '  the  rich  man  of 
Arimathea,'  mentioned  in  the  Gospels,  have  given  such  wild 
interpretations  contrary  to  the  uniform  use  of  the  language,  or 
made  conjectures  contrary  to  all  authority,  it  is  noticeable,  that 
two  only  say  that  it  must  be  interpreted  according  to  the  context, 
all  the  rest  render  it  in  its  simple  and  uniform  sense,  'rich.' 
Of  these  two,  Ibn  Ezra  shews  that  he  accepted  the  word  in  its 
natui-al  meaning,  '  b-\it>;y  j-|N  is  like  D"'yci  riN,  and  alludes  to  the 
nations  who,  as  compared  with  Israel,  are  wealthy.'  Abulwalid 
accounts  it  to  signify  '  wicked '  in  no  other  way  than  elsewhere 
'  wise,'  i.  e.  literally  neither ;  but  in  the  one  place  he  must  mean 
that  it  is  used  of  those  who  are  wicked,  in  the  other  of  those  who 
are  wise  :  '  c  In  (Is.  liii)  it  is  not  from  this  meaning,  but  from  the 
meaning  of  D^ytJn  who  are  mentioned  with  it,  and  so  in  "  <iQi-\t{;>y 


^  '  The  land  of  the  living '  is  explained  of  '  the  land  of  Israel '  by  Yepheth 
b.  AH  (p.  27),  Rashi  (p.  38),  Joseph  b.  Nathan  (p.  73),  de  Rocca  Martini 
(p.  200),  NaphthaU  Altschuler  (p.  322),  Moses  of  Salerno  (p.  383),  Man. 
b.  Israel  (pp.  439,  445),  Clear  Fountain  (p.  433),  Orobio  (p.  515),  and  Ibn 
Amram  (resting  on  Ezek.  sxxii.  24  sqq.),  p.  543. 

*  Of  'this  life,'  Ibn  Ezra  (p.  46),  Jacob  b.  Reuben,  Karaite  (p.  62),  Ibn 
Mali  (p.  76),  Moses  b.  Nachman  (p.  82),  Ibn  Shaprut  (p.  95),  Ibn  Dan^n 
(p.  212),  Troki  (p.  253),  Lanyado  (p.  309),  de  Marini  (p.  335),  David  Alt- 
schuler (p.  37  r),  Mordekhai  (p.  381),  Herz  Homberg  (p.  402),  Passani  (p.  410) ; 
alternatively  of  either,  Kimchi  (p.  53),  Aaron  b.  Joseph  (p.  88),  Abarbanel 
(pp.  180,  195),  Abraham  b.  Judah  Chazan  (p.  316). 

y  P.  149.  ^  Lopez  (p.  347). 

*  Mordekhai  (p.  381),  Milchamoth  Adonai  (p.  390).  ^  Below,  p.  47. 
"=  Book  of  Roots,  col.  554  Oxf.                                          ^  Eccl.  x.  6. 


Ix  INTRODUCTION    TO   THE 

set  in  a  low  place,"  he  means  by  it,  "the  \visee,"  viz.  because  it  is 
conti-asted  with  ^2D  "  folly."  '  Salome  ben  Melech  says  of  Abul- 
walid's  gloss,  '  It  is  not  allowable  to  abandon  the  usual  signifi- 
cation "  rich,"  merely  on  account  of  the  jiarallel  clause.' 

The  object  of  these  remarks  is  simply  defensive,  that  any  who 
call  themselves  Cliristians  might  not  be  perplexed  in  tlieir  belief, 
or  confirmed  in  their  unbelief,  through  this  volume,  Avhich  being 
the  defence  of  Jewish  controversialists  for  not  accepting  this 
section  of  Isaiah  as  being  fulfilled  in  Jesus,  must  necessarily  be 
to  a  great  extent  Anti-Christian.  Those  for  whom  these  remarks 
are  chiefly  written  would  not  be  benefited  by  anything  said 
against  the  prominent  misinterpretation  in  the  volume.  For 
they  do  not  believe  in  it  already.  To  believe  in  it  would  involve 
a  belief  in  prophecy,  beginning  before  the  first  coming  of  our 
Lord,  and  stretching  out  nearly  two  thousand  years,  and  for  the 
most  part  not  yet  fulfilled  :  only  they  ought  not  to  use  Jewish 
interpretations  while  disbelieving  them.  One  only  thing  it  may 
not  be  without  its  use  to  observe,  because  it  illustrates  the 
unique  charactei'  of  the  sinless  sufi'erer  pourtrayed  by  Isaiah. 
Granted  all  which  the  Jews  say  of  their  suff"erings  at  the  hands 
of  the  Homans,  or  old  Persian  fire-worshippers,  or  Mohammedans 
(which  fell  still  more  heavily  on  Christians),  or  in  later  times, 
of  Christians,  ill-instructed  in  their  religion,  in  the  now  past 
'  iron  age  of  Judaism,'  a  feature  of  the  picture,  very  prominent 
in  Isaiah,  yet  least  realised  in  them,  is  the  meekness  of  that 
sufferer.  This  is  not  said  in  the  slightest  disparagement  of 
them.  They  expected  a  Messiah,  who  should  free  them  by 
conquest  from  the  yoke  of  the  nations ;  and  so  their  history  was 
rather  like  that  of  their  lion-hearted  forefathers,  the  Maccabees, 
than  the  silent  and  patient  sufferer  pourtrayed  by  Isaiah. 

One  thing  more  may  be  observed,  that  the  Jewish  contro- 
versialists, collected  here,  did  not  satisfy  the  Jewish  mind  by 
their  interpretations.  This  is  implied  by  the  very  variety  of 
them.  The  majority  indeed  of  those  who  professedly  interpret 
the  section,  follow  Rashi  and  his  followers,  Ibn  Ezra  and  the 
two  Kimchis,  in  interpreting  it  of  themselves  t     Yet  not  a  few 

"  See  below,  p.  219.  The  root  occurs  seventy-seven  times  in  the  Old 
Testament.  Jls-  is  not  only  a  different  word,  but  is  only  used  of  '  stumbling,' 
never  in  a  moral  sense.  The  conjectures  pliljy  (Ewald),  yn  'TD3?  (Biittcher)  only 
shew  that  their  interpretation  did  not  suit  the  text. 

'  '  This  Parashah  the  commentators  agree  in  explaining  of  the  Captivityj 
although  the  singular  number  is  used  in  it  throughout.'     Ibn  Crispin  (p.  9),' 


ENGLISH    TRANSLATION.  Ixi 

went  against  the  stream.  The  Karaites  only  varied  the  applica- 
tion by  interpreting  the  section  of  the  '  wise  of  their  own  sects,' 
on  the  ground  of  some  persecution  which  they  met  with;  as 
some  Eabbinic  Jews  thought  it  was  the  righteous  among  them  \ 
or  any  just  man^;  some,  that  it  was  Jeremiah  J,  or  Isaiah  him- 
self k;  some,  Hezekiah  1;  one.  Job  ^^ ;  some,  the  seed  of  David  in 


'  Rashi,  Jos.  Kimchi,  D.  Kimchi,  all  with  one  voice  explain  the  entire  pro- 
phecy of  Israel.'  Abarbanel  (p.  154),  '  The  majority  of  commentators,  Kashi, 
Ibn  Ezra,  D.  Kimchi,  Abarbanel,  agree  in  holding,'  &c.,  xxxiv.  p.  229,  'the 
correct  explanation,  as  given  by  D.  Kimchi,  Rashi,  and  other  expositors.' 
Lopez  (p.  349).  Those  who  follow  it  are  Joseph  Kara,  R.  Jacob  b.  Reuben, 
Joseph  b.  Nathan,  Ibn  Mali,  Ibn  Shaprut,  Isaac  Eliyyah  Cohen,  Lipmann, 
Martino,  Farissol,  xxxiv,  Meir  Aramah,  Troki,  Abraham  of  Cordova,  Abraham 
b.  Judah  Chazan,  Lopez,  Segre,  David  Altschuler,  Meir  b.  Simeon,  Mosheh 
of  Salerno  (p.  381),  Hayyim  b.  Musa  (p.  387),  /.  (p.  391),  m.  (p.  393),  Luzzatto 
(p.  413),  Clear  Fountain  (p.  429),  Manasseh  b.  Israel  (p.  436),  Orobio  (pp. 
476-531),  Ibn  Amram  (pp.  532-549),  Khozari  and  its  Commentators  (pp. 
559-563),  Gershom  b.  Nathan  (pp.  564-567).  The  Persian  Translation  has, 
'  From  the  bond  of  exile  and  from  judgment  he  was  snatched.'  The  Tataric 
has,  I  believe,  no  indication. 

^  In  Yepheth  b.  Ali  (p.  19),  Jacob  b.  Reuben,  Karaite  (p.  81),  Aaron  b. 
Joseph,  Karaite  (p.  87). 

^  Rashi  (p.  37),  Meir  Aramah  (p.  240),  R.  Abraham  b.  Judah  Chazan 

(P-  344)- 

'  Some  in  Ibn  Crispin,  contradicted  by  him  (p.  99)  ;  Lipmann  (p.  151)  ; 
'  each  individual  among  the  just,'  Mosheh  Cohen  (p.  1 17)  ;  'a  very  good  man,' 
Shclomo  Levi  (p.  275)  :  '  the  righteous  worshipper  of  God,'  Lanyado  (p.  305); 
'this  good  man,'  Ibn  Janah  (p.  373)  ;  'one,  ready  to  suffer  martyrdom  for 
love  of  God,'  Anon.  t.  (p.  39S). 

J  Saadyah  Gaon  in  Yepheth  b.  Ali  (p.  19),  who  says  that  he  lost  his  senses 
in  so  doing  ;  but  it  is  pronounced  attractive  by  Ibn  Ezra  (p.  43),  and  Menahem 
b.  Shelomo  Meiri  (see  p.  154),  of  whom  again  Abarbanel  says,  'What  good- 
ness or  excellence  they  see  in  it,  I  do  not  understand.'  '  I  cannot  see  a  single 
verse  which  really  points  to  him'  (p.  164);  he  himself  writes  against  it, 
(ibid.),  as  does  Herz  Homberg  briefly  (p.  400);  Jehuda  b.  Balaam  thought  it 
quite  probable  (p.  551). 

^  Ibn  Ezra  ap.  Luzzatto,  p.  413.  And  Ibn  Ezra  himself,  according  to  the 
reading  received  by  Dr.  Neubauer  (p.  44  Hebr.),  which  seems  to  me  the  best, 
'or  my  servant  will  be  (^^''aon)  the  prophet,  and  this  is  nearer  than  that,'  viz. 
•  every  servant  of  God  who  is  in  exile,'  &c.  But  apart  from  this  reading, 
Ibn  Ezra  says  at  the  end  of  chap,  liii,  that  the  subject  of  chap,  liii  is  the 
same  as  that  of  xlii.  i,  xlix.  3,  1.  6  ;  but  he  expressly  says  on  xlii.  i,  '  Most 
commentators  say  that  "my  servant"  is  the  righteous  of  Israel,  and  the 
Gaon  says  that  he  is  Cyrus ;  and  in  my  eyes  it  is  certain  that  it  is  the 
prophet  who  speaks  of  himself,  as  in  xlix.  6,  8.' 

^  Saadyah  Ibn  Danan,  as  a  revelation  to  himself  (p.  203),  and  in  part  by 
the  Rabbis  (p.  203),  but  typically  of  the  Messiah  (pp.  202,  205,  206,  216), 

™  Eliezer  the  German  in  Luzzatto,  p.  413. 


Ixii  INTRODUCTION   TO   THE 

exile  and  the  Messiah,  so  that  all  the  expressions  of  contempt 
refer  to  the  seed  of  David  in  exile,  and  all  the  glorious  things 
to  the  Messiah  hj  some  divided  the  sufiferings  and  the  glory,  in 
like  way,  between  the  Messiah  ben  Joseph  and  the  Messiah  ben 
David  o;  some  are  divided  between  two  opinions  p;  two  think 
that  there  is  a  further  reference  to  the  Messiah  fi;  one  *■,  that 
'  there  seems  to  be  considerable  resemblance  and  allusion  to  the 
work  of  the  Christian  Messiah,  and  to  the  events  which  are 
attested  to  have  happened  to  him,  so  that  no  other  prophecy 
can  be  found,  the  gist  and  subject  of  which  so  immediately 
applied  to  him;'  some  think  that  it  relates  to  the  Messiah  and 
the  people  together  ^ ;  some  suppose  it  to  be  an  echo  of  the 
dissatisfaction  expressed  by  the  saying,  '  There  is  a  just  man  and 
it  goes  ill  with  him  *.'  Throughout  there  are  those  who  still 
interpreted  the  section  of  the  IMessiahV;  and  among  them  it  is 
remarkable,  that  Maimonides  retained  herein  the  simple  faith  of 
his  forefathers  ^,  interja-eting  of  the  Messias  the  words, '  He  came 
up  as  a  sucker,'  &c.,  as  well  as  the  glories,  *  at  Him  kings  will 
shut  their  mouth,'  and  the  prophecy  of  the  Branch  in  Zechariah, 
and  the  coming  of  the  Lord  to  His  temple  ^^  in  Malachi ;  and 

as  also  Passani  (p.  407).  Ibn  DanSn  had,  at  one  time,  '  not  thought  it  ad- 
missible to  apply  the  prophecy  to  the  King  Messiah,  for  reasons  which  any 
intelligent  man  can  find  out '  (probably  as  too  near  the  Christian  interpre- 
tation). Hillel  said  that  there  was  no  Messiah  for  Israel,  because  they  had 
enjoyed  him  in  the  days  of  Hezekiah.  Sanhedrin,  quoted  p.  294,  note  a. 
Moses  b.  Gecatalia,  p.  551. 

"  Karaites  in  Yepheth  b.  Ali  (p.  19). 

°  Some  in  Abarbanel  (p.  162),  in  Lanyado  (pp.  303-305),  in  Naphthali 
Altschuler  (p.  321). 

P  Abarbanel,  of  Israel  (p.  168),  or  Josiah  (p.  187)  ;  Saadyah  Ibn  Danan,  at 
one  time,  Israel  or  Jeremiah  (p.  114);  Mordekhai,  Israel  or  the  Messiah 

(P-  379)- 

1  Ibn  Danan  and  Passani  (note  1).  ""  Abr.  Farissol,  beg.  p.  220. 

8  'When  he  speaks  of  the  people,  the  King  Messiah  is  included  in  it;  and 
when  he  speaks  of  the  King  Messiah,  the  people  is  included  with  him,'  Astruc 
(p.  1 29)  ;  '  including  any  righteous  also,'  Sal.  de  Marini  (p.  324). 

*■  Mentioned  by  Farissol  (pp.  220,  221),  'I  hare  found  some  expositors 
who  suppose  &c.,  and  others  [not  the  Christians]  who  apply  it  confidently 
to  the  King  Messiah,'  &c. 

"  Moses  b.  Nachman,  as  a  controversialist,  of  Israel  (p.  78),  Ibn  Crispin 
(pp.  99,  100),  Astruc  (p.  129),  Moses  Elsheikh  (p.  268),  R.  Naphthali  Alt- 
schuler (p.  319),  and  the  hymn-writer  R.  Israel  Nagara  (p.  385)  ;  see  also 
Farissol  (note  t). 

"  In  his  Iggerd  Teman,  a  letter  written  a.d.  i  172  to  the  Jews  in  Yemen. 
See  Gratz,  vi.  304,  note  2. 

^  Pp.  274,  275. 


ENGLISH   TRANSLATION.  Ixiii 

yet  that  he,  idolised  by  so  many,  had  not  apparently  the  slightest 
following  in  this.  He  held  to  this  faith,  although  he  said  that 
'*  expectations  of  the  Messiah  had  always  bi'ought  misfortune 
on  the  house  of  Jacob,'  discouraged  all  calculation  of  his  coming, 
mentions  three  false  Messiahs  who  rose  up  in  forty  years, 
else  unknown,  yet  mentions  a  family  tradition,  that  prophecy, 
as  a  precursor  of  the  Messiah,  would  burst  out  anew  in  1216. 

But  manifold  and  laborious  as  was  their  search,  they  were 
engaged  in  an  impossible  problem,  to  find  any  counterpart  to 
this  great  prophecy,  except  Him  whom  it  foreshadowed.  They 
■were  not  intellectually  second-rate  men  who  felt  the  difficulty. 
The  sceptical  Ibn  Ezra,  who  is  described  as  '  y  a  man  of  remark- 
able intellectual  gifts,  vivid,  talented,  but  without  warmth,' 
begins  his  solution  with,  '^This  Parashah  is  an  extremely 
difficult  one.  Our  opponents  say  that  it  refers  to  their  God.' 
Ibn  Crispin  complains  of  '  *  the  forced  and  fai'-fetched  interpre- 
tations, of  which  '  others  '  have  been  guilty  ; '  says,  that  those  who 
interpret  the  Parashah  collectively,  't>  distort  the  passage  ft'om 
its  natural  sense,'  since  'the  singular  number  is  used  throughout,' 
and  whereas  the  prophet  calls  the  people  '  Israel  my  servant,'  he 
here  says  '  my  servant '  only.  '  These  expositors,'  he  says,  '  shut 
the  doors  of  the  literal  interpretation  against  themselves,  and 
wearied  themselves  to  find  the  entrance.'  He  himself  goes  back 
to  '  c  the  teaching  of  our  Rabbis,  the  King  Messiah.'  R.  Isaac 
b.  Elij-yah  Cohen,  while  speaking  strongly  against  the  Christian 
interpretation,  says  ^,  '  I  have  never  in  my  life  seen  or  heard  of 
the  exposition  of  a  clear  or  fluent  commentator,  in  which  my 
own  judgment,  and  that  of  others  who  have  pondered  on  the 
same  subject,  might  completely  acquiesce.'  He  speaks  the 
judgment  of  others  his  contemporaries  also.  Yet  his  own 
interpretation  is  one  of  the  most  forced,  and  seems  only  designed 
to  bring  into  the  section  forced  allusions  to  our  Lord.  Saadyah 
Ibn  Danan  (a  contemporaiy  of  Abarbanel  ^),  who  is  praised  in 
other  respects  f  says  s,  '  I  set  before  myself  the  notes  of  those 


^  In  France,  about  a.d.  1087;  Cordova,  about  a.  d.  1117;  Fez,  about 
A.D.  1127;  Griitz,  pp.  308,  309. 

T  In  Griitz,  Gesch.  vi.  1 83  sqq.  Gratz  says  of  his  criticism  on  the  Pentateuch, 
'It  is  a  question,  which  was  in  earnest,  his  scepticism  or  his  belief?'  ibid, 
p.  192. 

==  P.  43.  »  P.  100.  *>  P.  99.  <^  P.  100.  <>  P.  138. 

*  A.D.  1460-1520  ;  Gratz,  viii.  p.  327.  '  Griitz,  ibid.  p.  320. 

6  P.  202. 


Ixiv  INTRODUCTION   TO   THE 

who  had  commented  upon  the  Parashah  "  Behold  my  servant,"  and 
pondered  over  them,  and  examined  the  opinions  tliey  contained. 
But  all  alike,  I  found,  lacked  solidity  and  soundness.'  Farissol 
apologises  for  those  who  interpreted  it  of  the  Messiah,  '  ^  What- 
ever justice  there  may  be  in  the  expression  of  our  wise  men,  who 
applied  the  prophecy  to  the  Messiah,  it  should  be  borne  in  mind 
that  although  they  tliemselves  and  their  words  are  both  truthful 
alike,  yet  their  object  was  allegorical.'  Moses  Elsheikh,  '  a 
writer,'  Wolf  says',  'of  much  reputation  among  the  Jews,'  saysJ, 
'  The  verses  in  this  Parashah  are  difficult  to  fix  or  arrange  in 
a  literal  manner,  so  that  the  various  parts,  from  the  beginning 
to  the  end,  may  be  combined  and  connected  closely  together. 
The  commentators  I  see  going  up  and  down  among  them,  and 
yet  neither  agreeing  on  the  subject  to  which  the  whole  is  to  be 
referred,  nor  disentangling  the  words  upon  any  simple  plan.' 
He  himself  then  in  his  '  humility,  set '  himself  '  to  apply  to  it  a 
straightforward  method,  according  to  the  literal  sense  of  the 
text,  such  as  ought  to  be  adopted  by  one  who  would  rightly 
unite  the  several  words  and  periods,  and  detei'mine  what  \'iew 
is  legitimate,  what  not.'  He  interprets  it  of  the  Messiah ;  yet, 
when  he  comes  to  verses  9-12,  which  speak  of  the  death,  he 
says  k,  '  These  verses  are  all  of  them  hard,  though  we  shall  not 
touch  on  everything  which  might  be  noticed.'  Shelomo  Levi 
says^,  'Throughout  this  prophecy,  all  the  commentators  exert 
their  utmost  on  its  interpretation,  and  are  at  no  small  variance  as 
to  its  import.'  He  expresses  himself  dissatisfied  with  all  which 
he  had  found.  Even  in  later  times,  K.  Naphthali  Altschuler  ™ 
expresses  his  surprise  that  '  Rashi  and  B,.  David  Kimchi  have 
not  with  the  Targum  applied  them  to  the  Messiah  likewise.' 
Herz  Homberg  argues  on  the  ground  of  the  singular,  against 
Rashi  and  Ibn  Ezra°.  Passaui  expresses  his  surprise  at  former 
commentators,  and  says",  'Not  one  of  the  explanations  is  in 
complete  accordance  with  the  language  of  the  text,  or  succeeds 
in  satisfying  us  ;  still  less  the '  Christians.  He  thinks  that,  like 
all  other  prophecies,  most  of  Isaiah's  also  point  to  the  latter 
days,  when  the  Messiah  shall  have  appeared,  but  exhorts  to 
caution  how  any  so  interpret  it,  '  Take  heed,  0  wise  men,  in 
your  words,  even  though  the  language  be  meant  to  be  meta- 
phorical  and   indirect.'      R.  Tanchum   seems   to   be   carefully 

»  P.  223.  '  Bibl.  Hebr.  i.  p.  808.  i  P.  259.  ^  P.  269. 

>  P.  175.  "  P.  319.  n  P.  400.  "  Pp.  406,  407. 


ENGLISH    TKAjNSLATION.  IxV 

ambiguous.  He  uses  the  j)hrase  '  any  person  or  nation  P,'  but 
speaks  of  the  subject  being  'one  of  the  generation  in  exile <i' 
who  had  died,  yet  '  a  guide  and  deliverer  r/  who  '  rescues  them 
from  captivity  and  from  their  enemies  generally,'  and  speaks  of 
'  his  hidden  nature,  the  mystery  connected  with  him  not  being 
revealed  to  them.'  He  concludes  with  a  protest  against  there 
being  anything  '  hyperbolical  beyond  what  is  elsewhere  per- 
mitted ®,'  or  allegorical  t,  and  seems  to  think  that  the  intention 
of  the  prophet  was,  not  to  be  understood.  Ibn  Amram  says  ", 
'  As  relates  to  the  Jews,  there  is  no  little  diflSculty  in  giving  a 
sense  to  those  most  obscure  words  of  Isaiah  in  the  present : 
they  manifestly  need  a  prophetic  spirit,  whence  our  older  and 
more  recondite  masters  went  apart  from  one  another  to  different 
explanations :  but,'  he  satisfies  himself,  '  each  very  far  removed 
from  the  exposition  of  the  Christians.'  For  error  is  manifold, 
truth  but  one. 

E.  B.  PUSEY. 

Oxford, 
December,  1876. 


P  P-  553-  1  P.  555.  '  P-  556.  «  P.  557. 

»  Ibid,  and  p.  558,  "  Pp.  536,  537. 


Brief  Extracts,  in  which  the  Jewish  Commentators  write  (j)  of 
the  vicariousness  of  the  sufferings  mentioned  in  this  section, 
(2)  the  actual  death  of  the  sufferer  or  sufferers,  (3)  of  hi3 
or  their  continued  intercession. 

a.  The  vicariousness  of  the  suffering. 

'  Surely  he  carried  our  sicknesses  and  bare  our  pains : — but  lie  was 
wounded  for  our  transgressions,  bruised  for  our  iniquities ;  his  destniction 
is  our  compensation  ;  and  by  his  stripes  we  are  healed. — God  laid  upon 
him  the  iniquity  of  us  all. — If  his  soul  becomes  a  trespass-offering  for 
sin — He  will  bear  their  iniquities,'  Saad.  Gaon,  pp.  17,  18.  'By  the  words 
surely  he  hath  carried  our  Mcknesses  they  mean,  that  the  pains  which  he 
fell  into  were  merited  by  them,  but  that  he  bore  them  instead. —  God 
appoints  his  servant  to  carry  their  sins,  and  by  doing  so  lighten  their 
punishment,  that  Israel  might  not  be  completely  exterminated. — By  tlie 
Messiah  bearing  them  they  would  be  delivered  from  the  wrath  which 
rested  upon  them,  and  enabled  to  endure  it,'  Yeplieth  b.  Ali,  pp.  23,  24. 
'  Israel  suffered,  in  order  that  by  his  sufferings  atonement  might  be  made 
for  all  other  nations;  the  sickness  which  ought  to  have  fallen  ujion  us,  was 
carried  by  him. — He  was  icounded  for  our  transgres.nons  and  bruised  for 
our  iniquities ;  the  chastisement  of  the  peace  that  was  for  us  fell  u[ion  him, 
he  was  chastised  that  the  whole  world  might  have  peace — He  endured 
punishment  as  though  he  had  been  a  sinner  himself,  and  for  the  sake  of 
otliers  bare  the  sin  of  many,'  Raslii,  pp.  38,  39.  '  They  have  been  carrying 
sicknesse.s  and  pains,  which  for  oiu-  iniquities  should  have  been  borne  by 
us,'  Jose])li  Qara,  p.  42.  'Israel  was  7iuntlered  loith  those  who  transgressed 
against  God,  and  carried  the  sin  of  many,  becau.se  through  his  pains  the 
Gentiles  had  peace;  and  the  sin  which  tliey  ought  to  have  carried  was 
borne  by  him,'  Ibn  Ezra,  p.  48.  '  The  sickness  and  pain,  which  ought  to 
have  fallen  upon  us,  has  fallen  upon  them,  and  they  are  our  ransom  and 
the  piice  of  our  atonement.  While  they  were  in  exile,  we  thought  that 
they  were  smitten  by  God  for  their  iniquity ;  but  now  we  see  that  it  was 
not  for  their  iniquity,  but  for  ours,  as  it  is  said.  He  suffered  panr/sfor  our 
transgressions,^  Kimchi,  p.  52.  ' //  thou,  Lord,  niahc  his  soid,  as  it  were, 
a  trespass-offering ,  then  as  every  trespass-offering  makes  some  atonement, 
so  the  work  of  this  "wise"  one  will  atone  for  the  iniquities  of  Israel,'  Jacob 
b.  Reuben  (Kar.),  p.  63.  ^  By  his  hnoivledge  my  servant  Israel  uill  rnal-e 
many  righteous  in  a  rigliteous  law,  and  their  iniquities  he  will  bear  in 
obtaining  their  forgiveness,'  Anon.  xvi.  p.  65.  '  We  were  thinking,  that  all 
these  chastenings  had  fallen  upon  him  because  of  his  own  iniijuity  :  now  we 
see  that  tliat  was  not  the  cause :  the  sickness  that  ought  to  have  come 
upon  us,  came  upon  him,  and  through  them  atonement  was  made  for  us; 
his  chastenings  were  for  our  transgressions,  and  they  resulted  in  our  peace  : 
the  Holy  One  did  not,  as  he  would  have  otherwise  done,  destroy  the  world 
for  onr  iniquities  ;  and  while  Israel  was  beaten  and  killed  (as  in  Ps.  xliv.  23) 
for  God's  lioly  name,  we  were  healed  by  his  stripes,'  R.  Joseph  b.  Nathan,  pp. 
72,  73.    '  He  was  numbered  with  the  transgressors,  bore  chastenings  as  though 


IXTltODLCTlOX    TO    THE    ENGLISH    TRANSLATION.         Ixvii 

he  had  been  a  sinner  and  transgressor  himself,'  ibid.  p.  74.  'It  was  our 
sicknesses  wliich  he  bare,  and  which  made  him  sick  and  pained  liim.'  '  The 
Lord  caused  the  iniquity  of  ua  all  (we  all  had  incurred  penalties  because 
of  him)  to  meet  upo7i  him,'  Yeshayab  b.  Mali,  p.  76.  '  By  his  dripcn  we 
were  healed,  because  the  stripes  by  which  he  is  vexed  and  distressed  will 
heal  us  :  God  will  pardon  us  for  his  righteousness  :  and  we  shall  be  healed 
both  from  oyr  own  transgressions  and  from  the  iniquities  of  our  fathers,' 
Mosheh  b.  Nachman,  p.  81.  'They  thought  that  the  only  object  of  Israel's 
existence  was,  as  Mohammed  said,  to  bear  the  pains  and  misfortunes  of  the 
world,  and  that  all  their  iniquities  and  transgressions  wei-e  carried  by  him 
as  though  he  had  been  the  scape-goat,'  Ibn  Shaprut,  p-  95  ;  '  he  will  hear 
and  atone  for  their  iniquities,  when  the  expiation  for  his  own  sins  and  his 
fathers  (by  which  is  meant  the  exile  with  its  attendant  miseries)  has  been 
accomplished,'  id.  p.  96.  'He  also  carried  the  sin  of  many ;  fur,  besides  his 
own  sins,  he  bore  (according  to  Lam.  v.  7)  the  sins  of  his  fathers  and  those 
of  his  sons  as  well,'  id.  ibid.  fin.  '  It  wiU  be  as  though  he  had  borne  all 
the  sicknesses  and  chastisements  which  fall  upon  us.  Or,  perhaps,  carry 
may  mean  "  take  away,"  "  forgive  "  (as  Exod.  x.  17);  from  his  pity  and  his 
prayers  for  us,  he  will  atone  for  our  transgressions,'  Ibn  Crispin,  p.  108  ; 
'by  tlie^ weals  breaking  out  on  his  flesh  in  consequence  of  his  anxiety  for 
us,  God  will  have  mercy  upon  him,  and,  by  sparing  him  for  the  sake  of  his 
sufferings  endured  on  our  account,  heal  us,'  id.  p.  109  ;  'because  we  had  in 
our  exile  incurred  the  extremest  penalty,  behold  it  was  as  though  this 
penalty,  which  had  been  deserved  by  all  of  us,  had  been  laid  by  God  upon 
him,'  ibid. ;  'his  soul  will  treat  itself  as  guilty,  and  so  receive  punishment 
for  our  trespasses  and  transgressions,'  id.  p.  1 1 2  ;  '  will  atone  for  them  (for 
Israel)  in  the  perfection  of  his  nature,  until  their  sins  depart  from  them  and 
they  are  left  gudtless,'  id.  p.  113.  '  All  the  sufferings  and  sicknesses,  they 
will  say,  which  we  ought  to  have  borne  for  our  iniquities,  have  been  borne 
by  the  righteous  for  our  sake,'  Mosheh  Cohen,  p.  117;  'verse  5  applies  to 
each  individual  righteous  man :  by  the  stripes  and  sufferings  which  each 
bore,  atonement  was  made  for  all  Israel,'  id.  p.  118 ;  '  these  righteous  ones 
in  Israel  were  not  bruised  with  sufferings  and  sickness,  except  at  the  pleasure 
of  the  Creator,  in  order  that — secondly,  they  might  bear  the  sins  of  those 
who  transgressed  in  Israel,'  id.  p.  119:  'if  the  righteous  have  suffered 
punishment  as  though  there  were  guilt  in  their  souls,'  ibid.  'Even  the 
transgressors  among  them  will  exclaim,  that  the  righteous  bore  all  these 
sufferings  and  persecutions  in  the  present  world  on  account  of  their 
iniquities,  that  by  those  sufferings  Israel's  guilt  was  atoned  for,'  id.  p.  120. 
'  The  chastisement  of  our  peace  ivas  upon  him,  because,  except  for  the 
merits  of  the  righteous,  the  world  had  not  been  preserved,  but  would  have 
been  laid  waste  by  the  Holy  One  for  the  nations'  sins. — By  his  stripes  we 
are  healed,  for  since  punishment  came  upon  the  righteous  without  cause, 
and  simply  on  account  of  the  Gentiles  who  sinned,  therefore  the  Almighty 
cuts  short  the  punishment  of  the  Gentiles  before  the  time  :  thus  they  are 
healed  by  the  stripes  of  the  righteous,'  Lipmann,  p.  150.  'His  death  was 
not  caused  by  his  own  iniquity,  but  by  the  wickedness  of  his  generation,' 
Abarbanel  (of  Josiah),  p.  189;  'the  pain  and  sickness  which  for  our 
transgressions  we  ought  to  have  received,  were  borne  by  that  just  one  for 
us,'  id.  p.  192  ;  'the  blow,  which  they  themselves  ought  for  their  iniquities 
to  have  received,  was  made  to  fall  upon  Josiah  by  the  hand  of  Pharaoh 
Necho,'  p.  194;  'he  canned  the  sin  of  many,  and  died  for  the  iniquities  of 
his  people,'  id.  p.  197.      'Because  the  troubles  which  had  come  to  him, 

C  2 


Ixviii  INTRODUCTION    TO    THE 

and  which  he  had  borne,  were  for  their  iniqxdties,'  Martino,  p.  201.  '  He 
[Hezekiah]  was  perfectly  just,  so  that  his  people  were  delivered  for  his 
merits,  and  he  carried  the  sins  and  transgressions,  which  they  had  com- 
mitted in  the  days  of  his  father,'  Ibn  Daniin,  p.  214.  'Now  of  a  certainty 
we  perceive  that  this  servant  Israel  has  sutfered  the  punishment  for  iniquity 
which  ought  to  have  been  carried  by  us,  and  borne  the  pain  which  for  our 
deeds  we  ought  to  have  endured,'  Farissol,  p.  224;  'since  he  bore  tlie 
punishment,  although  unjustly,  we  are  healed,  and  escape  the  reward  of  our 
iniquities,'  ibid. ;  '  the  Lord  brought  on  the  servant  the  penalty  and  retri- 
bution which  we  ought  to  have  paid,'  id.  pp.  224,  225;  'this  happiness 
will  come  to  him  as  an  equivalent  for  the  penalties  he  had  endured  in  place 
of  the  Gentiles,'  id.  p.  236.  'If  he  [the  just]  is  entangled  in  the  iniquity 
of  his  generation,  repentance  is  not  within  his  power,  and  he  must  die  in 
consequence;  hence  it  is  said,  The  Lord  was  pleased  to  hraixe  him,  as 
though  for  its  own  iniquities.  I  notice  two  things ;  i.  that  he  is  righteous  ; 
2.  tliat  he  sees  and  is  satifjicd  with  many  and  sore  troubles,  and  that  nothing 
short  of  death  can  secure  atonement  for  him  :  this  being  so,  it  follows  that 
he  must  suffer,  not  for  his  own  sins,  but  for  those  of  the  people. — By  his 
knowledge  he  will  justify  the  just :  if  he  does  this,  however,  he  will  bear 
their  iniquities,  i.e.  bear  them  on  their  behalf,'  R.  Meir  Aramah,  p.  242. 
'  The  calamities,  in  which  the  chastisements  of  exile  consisted,  did  not  come 
upon  him  for  his  own  iniquity,  but  the  pains  and  sicknesses  (under  which 
image  they  are  here  represented)  wliich  ought  in  justice  to  have  fallen 
upon  us,  fell  instead  upon  him,'  Troki,  p.  251  ;  'by  the  clause,  carried  tlie 
sin  of  many,  it  is  signified,  that  not  only  was  he  not  wicked,  as  the  Gentiles 
imagined,  but  in  his  righteousness  he  even  bore  and  carried  the  sin  of 
many  among  the  Gentiles,  as  it  is  said,  And  their  iniquities  he  will  hear,' 
id.  p.  256.  '  What  we  had  seen  before  meant  nothing  except  that  he  was 
carrying  our  sicknesses,  and  that  his  sufferings  were  for  the  protection  of  his 
generation,'  Moses  Elsheikh,  p.  264  ;  '  Jw  carried  our  sicknesses,  i.  e.  he 
was  ready  to  carry  them  of  his  own  accord,'  id.  p.  266.  'The  sufiFerings  of 
the  righteous  cannot  atone  for  the  special  sins  of  the  individual,  but  each 
man  will  have  to  pay  his  own  particular  penalty  for  them  after  death ;  the 
ini'/aity  of  us  all,  however,  i.e.  the  iniquity  common  to  our  whole  race,  the 
Lord  laid  upon  him,  viz.  upon  the  righteous,  who  is  punished  for  the 
ini(|uity  of  his  own  age,'  Sh'lomo  Levi,  p.  2S2.  'The  sufferings  of  the  third 
kind  are  such  as  do  liberate  a  generation  from  its  guilt,  and  effect  atone- 
ment for  it ;  and  this  is  what  will  be  the  case  with  the  generation  of  the 
Messiah. — The  chastisement  of  our  peace  was  upon  him,  and  by  his  stripes 
we  are  healed,  implying,  as  it  does,  that  we  are  entirely  free  from  all  iniquity 
[may  allude]  to  the  tliird,  or,  in  other  words,  to  the  generation  of  the 
Messiah,'  p.  283  ;  'God  here  [ver.  12]  makes  his  final  declaration  respecting 
the  righteous  one  who  is  to  atone  for  his  generation,'  id.  p.  286.  'He 
himself  carried  our  sicknesses  and  hare  our  pains,  and  by  saying  he  himself, 
the  prophet  indicates  that  the  righteous,  of  his  own  will,  was  pleased  to  ' 
carry  them  for  Israel. — We  thought  him  stricken  of  God  for  ins  own  sins, 
whereas  in  reality  he  was  stricken  for  ours,  being  himself  just  and  perfect,' 
Lanyado,  p.  306  ;  '  the  righteous,  voluntarily  and  of  his  own  accord,  bears 
the  sicknesses  of  his  generation,  in  order  to  merit  the  never-ending  pleasure 
of  making  atonement  fur  them,'  id.  p.  307.  'Israel  suffered  in  order  that 
by  his  sufferings  atonement  might  be  made  for  all  the  wicked,'  Abraham 
Chazan,  p.  315.  'Now  we  see  that  this  was  not  a  consequence  of  his 
depression,  but  that  he  suffered  in  order  that  l)y  his  sufferings  atonement 


ENGLISH   TEANSLATION.  Ixix 

might  be  made  for  the  whole  of  Israel ;  as  it  is  said  of  the  prophet  Micah, 
that  the  blood  issuing  from  him  made  atonement  for  all  Itsrael,'  Naphthali 
Altschuler,  p.  321  (who  also  mentions  the  Messiali  b.  Joseph,  and  the 
belief  of  the  present  unseen  sufferings  of  the  Messiah  for  Israel,  in  the 
Gemara).  ' //e  carried  our  sicknesses;  for  it  was  we  who  were  really 
sick  and  the  ultimate  cause  of  his  sufferings,  and  all  the  punishments 
spoken  of  should  have  come  rightly  upon  us,'  Sh'lomoh  de  Mariiii,  p.  329  ; 
'he  icill  hear  their  iniquities,  as  the  righteous  bears  those  of  his  own 
generation,'  id.  p.  338.  '  Previously,  we  [the  Gentiles]  imagined  that 
sufferings  had  been  sent  upon  Israel,  as  a  punishment  by  the  Almighty, 
and  therefore  thought  him  "stricken,  smitten  of  God,  and  afHicted."  This 
was  not  so  hovvever ;  they  were  endured  by  him  on  our  account.  Or  we 
may  take  another  line,  and  suppose  that  they  are  words  of  Israel,  spoken 
by  them  in  reference  to  the  righteous  ;  which  case  they  thoroughly  suit. 
They  will  then  express  Israel's  confession,  that  the  sufferings,  which  they 
ought  for  their  own  iniquities  to  have  endured,  were  borne  by  the  i-ighteous 
for  their  sake — by  his  stripes  ice  irre  healed,  by  the  stripes  of  the  righteous 
we  are  forgiven — we  followed  the  stubbornness  of  our  heart,  but  the  Lord 
laid  upon  him,  the  righteous,  the  iniquity  of  us  all,'  Lopez,  pp.350,  351. 
'  All  these  sicknesses  and  afflictions  only  befel  the  righteous,  to  cleanse 
them  from  the  iniquity  they  had  committed,  and  to  make  atonement  for 
the  transgressors  in  Israel ;  for  the  righteous  maketh  atonement  for  his 
generation,  as  we  learn  from  the  case  of  Josiah,"  id.  p.  352  ;  'in  their 
death  they  atoned  for  the  sins  of  many,'  id.  p.  353 ;  '  the  transgressors  in 
Israel  will  perceive  that  all  the  sufferings  of  the  righteous  were  on  their 
behalf,  that  through  their  death  their  own  sins  might  be  forgiven '  &c.,  id. 
ibid.  '  The  chastisement  &c.,  the  suflferings  which  ought  to  have  come  upon 
us,  in  order,  by  blotting  out  our  iniquity,  to  perpetuate  our  peace,  fell  upon 
him,  and  by  the  stripes  which  came  on  him  the  plagues  of  our  iniquity  were 
healed,  they  were  atoned  for  and  so  dispersed,'  David  Altschider,  p.  370. 
'  He,  either  the  servant  Jacob,  or  the  Messiah  who  will  be  king  over  the 
seed  of  Jacob,  was  wounded  or  bruised  for  the  iniquity  of  the  Gentiles,  in 
order  that  he  might  receive  the  penalty  on  their  behalf,'  Mord'khai  b. 
Y'hisafah,  p.  379.  'The  sicknesses  and  pjains  which  ought  to  have  fallen 
to  our  lot,  were  ho7'ne  and  carried  by  him  instead  : — by  his  stripes,  the 
stripes  which  he  bore  when  stricken,  we  are  healed,'  Mosheh  of  Salerno, 
p.  382.  '  Sometimes  misfortunes  light  upon  the  righteous,  not  as  a  punish- 
ment, but  for  the  .sake  of  a  whole  nation,  that  atonement  may  be  made  for 
it. — God  brings  sufferings  on  the  just,  as  a  satisfaction  for  the  evil  destined 
to  afflict  a  whole  people,  that  it  may  thus  be  averted :  as  our  Rabbis  say, 
"The  death  of  the  righteous  worketh  atonement."  AVhen  the  prophet  says. 
Surely  he  carried  &c.,  he  means — they  [the  sufferings]  do  not  fall  upon  them 
[the  righteous]  for  any  sin  they  may  have  conmiitted,  but  as  an  atonement, 
whether  for  all  the  world,  or  for  the  entire  people,  or  for  some  single  city,' 
Yoseph  Albo,  p.  3S4.  '  Tiiey  will  not  at  first  perceive,  that  whatever  he 
underwent  was  in  consequence  of  their  own  transgression,  the  Lord  having 
chosen  him  to  be  a  trespass-offering,  like  the  scape-goat  which  bore  all  the 
iniquities  of  the  house  of  Israel,'  Herz  Homberg,  p.  401;  'my  servant  vnU. 
be  righteous  for  many,  adventuring  his  soul  freely  for  the  general  good, 
and  not  sparini;  his  own  life,  if  others  might  be  benefited  through  his  death, 
but  enduring  the  burthen  of  their  sins,  in  order  to  release  them  from  punish- 
ment,' id.  p.  404.  'All  perceived  that  he  [Hezekiah]  teas  tcaunded  for  their 
transgressions,  and  bruised  for  their  iniquities,  to  make  atonement  for  them 

e  3 


Ixx  INTRODUCTION    TO   THE 

unto  God  ;  for  the  attribute  of  judgment,  displaying  itself  before  them,  laid 
upon  him  the  iniquity  of  them  all,  as  the  text  says,  for  the  tran.fgression  of 
my  people,  even  the  strol-e  which  should  have  fallen  upon  them,'  Yacob 
Passani,  p.  409;  'because  he  bare  the  iniquities;  of  the  age,'  id.  p.  410. 
'  In  fact  it  was  they  themselves  [the  Gentiles]  who  had  rather  been  de- 
serving of  punishment,  and  that,  through  Israera  merits,  in  acijuiescing  in 
their  afflictions  as  just,  God  had  preserved  them — until  the  time  of  their 
deliverance  should  arrive,  which  would  be  for  the  benefit  of  the  whole 
world,'  Luzzatto,  p.  423.  'By  his  knowledge  Sec,  Israel  suffers  oppression 
from  the  Christians  who  are  healed  by  those  sufferings,'  Clear  Fountain, 
p.  432.  '  Whereas  he  suffered  the  sicknesses  and  sufferings  which  we 
deserved  for  our  sins,  his  troubles  appear  to  have  been  the  cure  of  ourselves, 
the  Lord  seems  to  have  transferred  on  him  the  punishment  of  us  aU,' 
Manasseh  b.  Isr.  Paraphrase,  p.  438  ;  '  if  he  offer  his  soul  as  an  expiation,' 
id.  p.  439.  'The  meaning  is  that  he  was  prostrated  by  our  sins,  and 
stricken  by  our  offences,  just  as  though  he  were  punished  for  us.  This 
eminent  saint,  while  bearing  the  chastisements  which  came  upon  him  as  a 
trial  (since  he  had  committed  no  sin),  attracted  to  himself,  as  it  were,  all 
the  chastisements  due  to  us,  and  gave  us  peace  for  them ;  thus  they  came 
upon  him,  and  by  /tw  stripes  we  were  healed.  We  have  already  explained 
the  possibility  of  God's  acting  in  such  a  way,  in  virtue  of  a  substitution 
decreed  by  him,'  Y'hudah  b.  Bal'am,  pp.  550,  551  ;  'any  one  would  think 
that  there  was  some  evil  in  him,  for  which  he  was  punished,  whereas  in 
fact  he  was  carrying  the  sin  of  others,'  id.  ibid.  '  All  liis  afflictions,  all  the 
punishment  and  sufferings  of  captivity  which  fell  upon  him,  were  for  their 
sins  and  transgressions,  in  virtue  of  the  justly  merited  judgment  of  God. 
It  is  thus  that  when  they  have  paid  the  debt  which  God  has  adjudged  to 
be  due  from  them,  he  then  sends  them  a  person  wlio  will  guide  them  and 
deliver  them,'  Tanchuni,  p.  556.  'His  calamities  are  not  the  consequence 
of  his  own  deeds,  but  on  account  of  the  multitude  of  our  sins  and  iniqui- 
ties,' Sh'lomoh  b.  Menahem,  p.  561  ;  '  his  stripes  are  healing  for  us,  because 
he  bears  what  ought  to  have  been  borne  by  us,'  id.  ibid.  '  By  the  sufferings 
of  Israel  atonement  will  be  made  for  all  nations,'  Gershom,  p.  565  ;  '  the 
peace  which  we  enjoyed  was  not  owing  to  our  righteousness,  but  because 
Israel  for  their  iniquity  had  received  upon  themselves  the  punishment 
which  ought  to  have  come  upon  us,'  id.  ibid. ;  '  the  Almighty,  unwilling  to 
destroy  his  world,  is  represented  by  the  prophet  as  punishing  Israel ;  for 
Israel  suffered  in  our  stead,'  id.  ibid. 

b.   The  actualness  of  the  death. 

'  He  gave  himself  over  to  whatever  burial  the  wicked  Gentiles  might 
decree :  for  the  Gentiles  used  to  condemn  the  Israelites  to  be  murdered 
and  then'  &c.,  Rashi,  p.  38.  '  Some  explain  "  in  his  deaths  "  of  those  who 
died  in  exile,'  Ibn  Ezra,  p.  47 ;  '  all  the  interpreters  say  that  this  verse 
[ver.  12]  alludes  metaphorically  to  those  who  peri.shed  in  defence  of  the 
doctrine  of  the  Divine  Unity,'  id.  p.  48.  'They  were  ever  killing  Israel, 
while  in  exile,  just  as  though  he  had  done  wrong,  although  he  had 
done  no  violence,  and  although  there  was  no  word  of  f;nile  in  bis  mouth. 
The  meaning  of  |nn  is  that  he  gave  himself  voluntarily  to  death  ;  they 
were  ready  to  release  him,  if  he  would  renounce  his  own  law — but  rather 
than  do  this,  he  met  a  voluntary  death,'  Kimchi,  p.  53 ;  '  because  in  exile 
he  resigned  himself  to  death  at  the  hands  of  the  Gentiles,'  id.  p.  55.     'And 


ENGLISH    TRANSLATION.  Ixxi 

when  be  reached  tlie  gates  of  death,  he  made  his  grave  with  the  wicked  : 
he  means  to  say  that  he  was  wicked,  and  consequently  had  to  meet  the 
death  of  the  wicked,  and  die  in  his  sin,  thereby  accepting  the  sentence 
passed  upon  him,'  Anon.  xvii.  p.  69.  '  He  made  his  grave  at  the  will  of  the 
wicked,  gave  himself  up  to  be  buried  at  their  decree,  when  the  vilest  of 
the  people  murdered  him,  because  of  God's  holy  name,'  Joseph  b.  Nathan, 
p.  73.  'The  rich  in  Israel  used  to  kill  them,'  Y'sha'yah  b.  Mali,  p.  77. 
'  The  stroke  had  befallen  them,  and  the  just  had  been  deprived  of  life, 
because  of  their  people's  transgression,'  Ahron  b.  Yoseph,  p.  88  ;  'or  the 
sense  may  be,  that  they  made  their  grave  like  men  proved  to  be  wicked 
by  trial,  and  sentenced  to  death,  and  like  the  rich  man  dying  in  his  sins,' 
id.  ibid.  '  Whenever  they  saw  a  single  wealthy  Jew,  they  would  seek 
some  mischief  against  him  to  kill  him,'  Ibn  Shaprut,  p.  96  ;  '  as  a  reward 
for  his  having  poured  out  his  soul  to  die  for  the  sanctity  of  God's  name.' 
id.  ibid.  '  Many  of  the  just  and  pious  were  slain,  and  those  who  buried 
them  gave  or  assigned  them  their  graves  icith  the  u-ieked,'  Ibn  Crispin,  p.  1 1 1 . 
'The  righteous  suffered  various  forms  of  death,  after  the  manner  in  which 
the  wicked  condemn  those  who  are  judicially  condemned,'  Mosheh  Cohen, 
p.  118;  'how  often  did  the  Israelites  resign  themselves  to  death  for  the 
holy  name,'  id.  p.  1 20.  '  The  prophet  uses  "  deaths  "  in  the  plural,  because 
they  condemned  them  to  different  forms  of  punishment,'  Astruc,  p.  134. 
'We  despised  him  and  pained  him  still  more  by  slaying  him  with  the 
sword,'  Elij'j-ah  Cohen,  p.  143.  '  Because  he  poured  out  &c.,  an  allusion 
to  the  righteous  who  died  in  captivity  on  behalf  of  the  sanctity  of  God's 
name,'  Lipuiann,  p.  151.  'Even  after  their  burial  the  wicked  heathen 
used  to  drag  them  forth  from  their  tombs. — Israel  was  persecuted  by  the 
wicked  even  to  the  tomb,'  Abarbanel,  p.  181;  'while  in  exile,  he  poured 
out  his  soul  to  die  for  the  sanctity  of  the  holy  name,'  id.  p.  186  ;  '  his  [Josiah's] 
death  is  spoken  of  as  his  grave  or  burial ;  because,  inasmuch  as  every  dead 
man  is  buried,  death  itself  may  be  spoken  of  as  burial,'  id.  p,  195.  'So  that 
those  belonging  to  it  would  be  "drawn  and  cast  out,"  and  not  deemed  worthy 
of  proper  burial,'  Martino,  p.  200.  '  By  "  giving  his  grave  with  the  wicked  " 
is  signified  that  he  gave  himself  up  to  martyrdom  for  the  sake  of  God's  holy 
name  :  the  expression  "with  the  rich"  derives  its  force  from  the  fact,  that 
the  wealthy  are  murdered  for  their  riches,  and  not  for  any  wickedness  that 
may  be  in  them,'  Sal.  b.  Melech,  p.  219.  'Supposing  beforehand  that  he 
always  made  his  grave  with  the  wicked,  so  that  his  final  reward  should  be 
"in  the  underworld  beneath,"  the  grave  of  the  wicked  being  preparatory 
to  the  punishment  of  Gehenna,'  Farissol,  p.  226.  'The  wealthy  among 
them  they  afflicted  and  murdered  by  various  kinds  of  death  ;  "the  rich  in 
his  deaths  "  are  added  because  the  Gentiles  used  to  murder  the  Israelites, 
to  secure  their  wealth,'  Anon,  xxxiv.  pp.  236,  237.  '  Nothing  short  of  death 
can  secure  atonement  for  him,  so  he  must  suffer'  &c.,  Meir  Aramah,  p.  242. 
'  Israel  was  ready  to  resign  himself  to  death  and  burial  for  the  Divine  Unity  ; 
we  [the  nations]  were  incessantly  framing  fraudulent  devices  against  him 
to  put  him  to  death,'  Troki,  p.  254.  *  "He,"  i.  e.  Moses,,  "made  his  grave 
with  the  wicked,"  for  he  was  buried  in  profane  ground,  in  order  to  bring 
them  in  with  him  [into  the  future  world],'  Mosheh  Elsheikh,  p.  271.  '  He 
gave,  i.  e.  allowed  his  burial  and  death  to  take  place  at  the  hands  of  the 
wicked,'  Sh'lomo  Levi,  p.  284  ;  '  inasmuch  as  he  poured  out  his  soul  to  die, 
and  in  so  doing  carried  the  sin  of  many,'  id.  p.  287  ;  'in  return  for  his  having 
"  poured  out  his  soul  to  die,"  and  voluntarily  choosing  death  rather  than 
life,'  id.  ibid.     '  At  the  time  when  we  smote  him  [Israel]  mortally,'  Abraham 


Ixiii  INTRODUCTION   TO  THE 

Cordov.  p.  292.  '  "He  was  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of  the  living,"  and  slain 
"  for  the  transgression  of  my  people,"  the  stroke  intended  for  them  being 
borne  by  him  instead,'  Lanyado,  p.  302  ;  '  he  was  not  to  be  put  to  death 
speedily,  but  tortured  by  every  conceivable  method  of  producing  a  severe 
and  painful  end  ;  and  hence  it  is  that  the  prophet  says  not  "in  his  death," 
but  "  in  his  deaths,"'  id.  ibid.  '  He  resigned  himself  to  whatever  form  of 
burial  might  be  decreed  against  him  by  the  wicked,  who  were  ever  con- 
demning the  Israelites  to  be  murdered — he  consented  to  be  slain  according 
to  the  will  of  the  wicked,  he  preferred  to  meet  death  for  the  sake  of  the 
Unity  of  God,'  Abraham  b.  Yehudah,  p.  316.  '  He  resigned  himself  to  be 
buried  in  whatever  manner  the  wicked  might  decree,  who  were  always 
condemning  Israel  to  be  murdered,'  Naphthali  Altschuler,  p.  322;  or  [if 
interpreted  of  the  Messiah]  '  when  the  wicked  man  dies,  the  Messiah  will 
die  likewise,'  id.  ibid.  'Of  the  just  who  were  to  be  found  at  all  periods 
in  Israel,  and  who  were  put  to  death  in  the  cause  of  truth,  not  one  ever 
felt  anxiety  or  seemed  to  be  sensible  of  all  that  he  was  suffering,'  de  Marini, 
P-  337-  '  "He  made  his  grave,"  referring  to  the  rigliteous  who  were  slain 
like  guilty  persons  condemned  by  the  sentence  of  a  court '  &c.,  Lopez,  p.  31^1 ; 
'  because  he  poured  out  his  soul  to  die,  by  undergoing  martyrdom  for  the 
holiness  of  God,  as  our  own  eyes  see  in  Spain  and  Portugal,'  id.  p.  352. 
'  We  made  them  buy  their  sepulchres  at  a  full  price — like  the  wicked  who 
are  treated  without  any  consideration'  &c.,  Segre,  p.  365.  '  He  was  cut  off 
from  the  land  of  life,  his  sufferings  accelerated  his  death,'  David  Altschuler, 
p.  371.  'He  made  his  grave  with  the  wicked,  for  they  spilt  their  blood — 
thus  they  resigned  themselves  to  martyrdom,'  Mordekhai  b.  Yhosafad,  pp. 
379,  380.  'He  made  his  grave,  entrusted  his  death  to  the  hand  of  the 
wicked ;  he  would  never  comply  with  false  worship,  but  preferred  death,' 
Mosheh  of  Salerno,  p.  383.  'When  he  was  led  to  the  slaughter,  he  was 
taken  thither  fi-om  prison '  &c..  Anon.  I.  p.  392.  '  He  died  before  his  time 
through  their  slaying  him,'  Ibn  Jaiiah,  as  cited  by  Kimclii,  ibid.  'He  was 
put  to  death  without  the  authority  of  the  govermnent,  and  without  the 
sentence  of  a  court  of  judgment ;  any  one  that  found  him  murdered  him, 
if  he  so  chose,'  Luzzatto,  p.  421.  '"  He  made  his  grave  ;"  Israel,  who  died 
for  the  law  and  the  holy  name  of  God,  make  their  grave  with  the  wicked, 
which  is  indeed  the  case  in  this  long  exile,'  Clear  Fountain,  p.  433 ;  '  these 
passages  prove  that  Israel  will  be  justified  by  their  confidence  in  God,  and 
by  their  martyrdom,  not  by  that  of  the  pretended  Messiah,'  id.  ibid. ;  '  the 
martyred  people  poured  out  its  soul  unto  death,'  ibid.  p.  434.  'He  was 
buried  with  malefactors — he  gave  himself  up  to  death  for  the  sanctification 
of  my  name,'  Paraphra.se  of  Manasseh  b.  Israel,  pp.  439,  440;  'we  have 
frequently  condemned  this  people  to  death,'  id.  j).  446.  '  Suffering  death 
with  ignominy,  and  amid  the  imprecations  of  the  populace,'  Orobio,  p.  508  ; 
'they  judged  him,  condemned  him,  and  often  murdered  him,'  id.  p.  517. 
'  And  why  were  they  slain  and  e.>cpelled  from  the  land  of  life  ? '  Ibn  Amram, 
p.  543  ;  'he  laid  down  his  life  for  God  and  his  holy  law,*  id.  p.  547. 
'  His  merits  were  not  known,  nor  his  perfections  and  excellences  described, 
until  after  his  deatli,  and  his  departure  from  the  land  of  the  living,  i.  e.  the 
present  world  of  sense,'  Tanchum,  p.  555.  'He  made  his  grave  with  the 
wicked  in  an  unclean  land,  and  his  death  vdth  the  rich '  &c.,  Sh'lomoh  b. 
Menahem,  p.  562.  '  Whatever  form  of  death  was  thus  selected  for  Israel, 
Israel  received  it ;  he  endured  the  death '  &c.,  Joseph  Kara,  p.  570. 


ENGLISH    TUANSLATIOX. 


c.   His  continued  intercession. 


'Iifc  virtue  of  his  sufferings — he  interceded  for  the  transgressors,'  Rasbi, 
p.  39.  '  He  also  interceded  for  the  transgressors,  as  is  said,  Jer.  xxix.  7, 
"  and  seek  ye  the  peace  "  '  &c.,  Ibn  Ezra,  p.  48.  '  He  continued  inter- 
cedin^T  for  the  wicked  who  were  transgressing  against  him,  and  sought 
blessings  on  their  land  from  the  Lord,  cf.  Jer.  xxix.  7,'  Kimchi,  p.  55. 
'God  receives  his  intercession  for  the  iniquities  of  us  all,'  Anon.  xvi.  p.  65. 
'God,  for  his  sake,  will  receive  intercession  for  transgressors,'  id.  ibid.  '  He 
interceded  for  the  transgressors,  prayed  for  them  to  me,  that  I  would  have 
mercy  on  them,  although  it  was  through  them  that  he  himself  was  smitten,' 
Anon.  xvii.  p.  70.  'He  prayed  to  the  Creator /or  the  transgressors;  for  the 
Jews  used  to  pray  for  all  men,  that  the  Creator  would  have  mercy  on  his 
own  world,  and  would  not  destroy  it,'  Y'sha'yah  beu  Mali,  p.  77.  'He  was 
punished  as  though  he  had  been  a  transgressor  himself,  whereas  in  fact  he 
carried  the  sin  of  many,  and  made  intercession  for  transgressors,'  Ahron  b. 
Yoseph,  p.  89.  '  Israel  interceded  (Jer.  xxix.  7)  for  sinners  and  trans- 
gressors,' Ibn  Shaprut,  p.  96.  'He  also  interceded  for  the  transgressors 
(i.  e.  for  Israel) ;  these  words  explain  in  what  way  he  carried  their  sins, 
viz.  by  making  intercession  for  them.  yjD  means  to  pray  or  entreat,  as 
lix.  16'  &c.,  Ibn  Crispin,  p.  114.  'In  their  death  they  atoned  for  the 
iniquities  of  the  many,  and  in  their  lives  entreated  for  mercy  upon  the 
transgressors,  although  oppressed  by  them,'  Moslieh  Cohen,  p.  120;  '  even 
the  transgressors  among  them  will  exclaim — that  a  redeemer  would  come  to 
them  for  their  sake,  seeing  that  they  were  ever  praying  to  the  Creator,  and 
interceding  for  mercy  on  behalf  of  the  transgressors  in  Israel,'  id.  ibid.  '  He 
prayed  to  his  God,  and  God  for  his  merits  sent  forth  healing,'  Eliyyah 
Cohen,  p.  142,  'While  Israel  will  be  interceding  and  praying  for  them,' 
Martiuo,  p.  201.  'So  that,  when  through  his  merits  and  intercession  the 
deliverance  was  WTOught,  it  was  as  though  he  had  borne  and  carried  all 
their  sicknesses  and  pains,'  Ibn  DanSn,  p.  209  ;  '  the  Lord  let  himself  be 
entreated  by  him,  forgiving  their  iniquity  and  saving  them,'  id.  p.  211; 
'  he  was  continually  praying  on  behalf  of  his  generation,  and  oftentimes 
God  let  himself  be  entreated  by  him.  y'3D'  expresses  continued  action, 
but  Scripture  does  not  mention  aU  the  deliverances  and  wonders  which 
were  vouchsafed  to  him,'  id.  p.  ■214.  'Israel  used  to  intercede  for  the 
transgressions,  as  in  Jer.  xxix.  7>'  Sal.  b.  Melech,  p.  220.  'The  congrega- 
tion of  Israel  was  in  the  habit  of  praying  for  the  good  estate  of  the  kingdom 
and  of  the  very  transgressors  who  ill-treated  them,  and  for  the  prosperity 
and  richness  of  the  crops,  as  we  now  do,'  Farissol,  p.  227;  '  or,  in  the  days 
of  the  redemption  they  will  intercede  for  the  transgressors,  that  they  may 
be  healed  and  forgiven  and  be  converted,'  ibid.  ' "  The  chastisement  of  our 
peace  was  upon  him,"  i.e.  Israel  prayed  for  our  peace,  that  we  might  be 
healed,  since  we  were  not  ourseh^es  worthy  to  enjoy  it,  except  through  the 
intervention  of  the  miseries  which  befel  him,  and  by  so  doing  produced  all 
our  present  prosperity.  This  Jeremiah  says  [xxix.  7],'  Anon,  xxxiv.  p.  235  ; 
' "  made  intercession  for  the  transgressors,"  as  the  Psalmist  says  [Ps.lxxii.  1 5], 
"He  shall  pray  for  him  continually ;"  for  we  find  yjD  used  in  the  sense  of 
interceding,  as  Jer.  vii.  16,'  id.  p.  238.  '  He  [Israel]  used  to  intercede  with 
God  for  our  adversities,  and  God  used  to  hear  his  prayer,  and  send  forth 
healing  for  our  wounds,'  Troki,  p.  252  ;  'he  used  to  pr.ay  to  God  on  behalf 
of  the  Gentile  transgressors,  although  they  caused  him  the  greatest  sufferings, 
he  interceded'  &c.,  at  length,  id.  p.  256.     'He  [Moses]  made  intercession 


Ixxiv  INTRODUCTION    TO   THE 

for  the  transijressors,  because  in  every  place  that  Israel  transgressed,  he 
interceiled  for  theiu,'  Mosiieh  Elsheikh,  p.  274.  'Although  at  the  time  of 
his  murder  he  was  ranked,  in  the  sentence  read  out  to  him,  with  the 
generality  of  other  transs^ressors,  yet  he  took  no  count  of  it,  knowing  truly 
that  he  "carried  the  sin  of  many,"  making  it,  as  he  did,  his  constant  habit 
to  "  intercede  for  transgressors,"  in  order  that  atonement  might  be  made 
for  them,'  Sh'lomo  Levi,  p.  287;  'he  "interceded  for  the  ti-ansgressors," 
i.  e.  for  the  peojde  in  the  wilderness,  who,  although  continually  vexing  him, 
he  used  to  pray  might  be  converted,'  id.  p.  288.  'He  "interceded  for  tlie 
transgressors,"  to  call  down  blessings  upon  their  land,  notwdthstanding  the 
fact  that  they  had  transgressed  against  him,'  Abraham  b.  Y'hudah  Chazan, 
p.  317.  'He  carried  the  sin  of  many,  and  interceded  for  the  ti-ansgressors, 
prayinof  continually  that  the  world  might  be  restored  through  the  establish- 
ment of  the  kingdom  of  the  Almighty,  and  that  all  men  might  call  upon 
the  name  of  the  Lord,  to  serve  him  with  a  whole  heart,'  Marini,  p.  339. 
'  In  their  lives  they  sought  for  mercy  on  the  transgressors,  notwithstanding 
the  oppression  which  they  had  endured  at  their  hands,'  Lopez,  p.  353 
'Though,  like  David  [Ps.  xxxv.  13],  he  was  ever  making  intercession  and 
supplication  on  behalf  of  the  transgressors  who  smote  him,'  Mordekhai  b 
Y'hosafah,  p.  3S0.  'He  will  intercede  for  the  transgressors  and  for  those 
■who  rise  up  against  him,'  Herz  Homberg,  p.  405.  '  Ho  interceded  for  tha 
transgressors,  that  the  city  might  not  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  king  of 
Assyria,'  Passani,  p.  4 10.  'And  made  intercession  for  the  transgressors 
(X"3Dn  as  Jer.  xxxvi.  2.5).  So  Ibn  Ezra,  Kimchi,  Abarbanel. — Israel  will 
be  redeemed  through  their  own  merits  in  the  endurance  of  suffering  and 
death,  in  forgiving  their  persecutors,  and  in  praying  for  them,  as  though 
to  shew  that  they  loved  the  nations,  and,  although  they  rewarded  them  evil, 
still  bare  no  ill-will  towards  them,'  Luzzatto,  p.  428.  '  Israel  prays  for  the 
welfare  of  the  nations  under  whose  rule  they  live,  as  commanded,  Jer.  xsix.  7. 
The  nations  will  exclaim,  "  Who  hath  believed  "  &c.  that  the  abased  and 
humiliated  people  will  pray  for  us  ?'  Clear  Fountain,  p.  434.  '  He  bore  the 
offence  of  many,  even  praying  for  the  very  transgressors  from  whom  he 
received  injuries,'  Paraphrase  of  Manasseh  b.  Israel,  p.  440.  'The  prophet 
attributes  four  merits  to  them, — 4.  having  observed  the  precept  of  Je 
xxix.  7,  and  this  too  so  carefully,  that  in  all  their  prayers,  they  pray  for  the 
health  of  the  prince,  and  the  peace  of  the  kingdom  or  province  wherein  they 
reside,  and,  what  is  more,  it  may  be  even  for  the  welfare  of  those  from 
whom  they  are  receiving  insult  and  wrong,'  Manasseh  b.  Israel,  p.  448. 
'His  intercession  will  avail  that  the  divine  justice  will  pitifully  pardon  the 
nations  their  abominable  sins,  even  those  they  committed  against  Israel, — 
for  Israel,  full  of  the  love  of  God  and  of  his  divine  S])irit,  will  pray  for  the 
rebellious,  will  be  the  mediator  of  peace  between  the  Lord  and  the  nations, 
praying  for  them,  not  with  an  ineffectual  prayer,  but  one  so  effectual  that 
his  entreaties  will  always  have  a  happy  result  in  mankind  being  benefited,' 
Orobio,  p.  531.  'He  will  pray  the  Lord  for  the  wicked  sons  of  Israel, 
tran.sgressors  of  the  law,  and  daily  deprecates  for  them,'  Ibn  Amram,  p.  548. 
'  S"3D'  interceded  and  prayed  for  them,  as  Jer.  vii.  16,'  Y'hudah  b.  Balam, 
p.  551.  'He  made  intercession  for  those  wicked  ones  who  thought  evil  of  I 
him  ;  in  his  humility  he  does  not  hate  tliem  for  their  behaviour  towards 
him,  or  forsake  them  and  withdraw  himself  from  them,  but  interceded  for 
them  (r'ac  like  r:cn  Jer.  vii.  16),'  Tanchum,  p.  557.  'He  will  hdercedt 
with  the  Almighty  that  he  would  bring  tliem  forth  out  of  exile  for  their] 
own  merit,'  Sh'loraoh  b.  M'nahem,  p.  563.     'Their  iniquities  he  will  bear, 


i 

■4 


ENGLISH    TEANSI.ATIOX.  IxXV 

ae  happens  generally  with  the  righteous,  one  interceding  for  others  that 
they  uiaj'  escape  unpunished,'  Gershom,  p.  567  ;  'for  the  transgressors  who 
were  suffering  the  prophet  interceded  with  the  Almighty,  and  the  Almighty 
through  his  means  gave  prosperity  to  the  world,'  id.  ibid. 


Additional  Note  on  page  xxxiv,  note  K 

It  has  been  suggested  to  me,  that  some  might  like  to  see  the  passage  of 
the  Siphra  d'  Eab  as  it  stands  in  the  printed  text,  and  so  to  compare  it  with 
that  which  Martini  found  in  his  MS.  or  MSS.  (Dr.  Neubauer  found  it  for 
me,  xii.  20.  In  Ugolini's  Thesaurus  it  is  in  t.  xiv,  p.  dcccxxx).  It  now  runs  : 
'  R.  Jose  said,  If  thou  art  minded  to  know  how  great  is  the  reward  of  the 
righteous  in  the  world  to  come,  go  and  learn  from  the  first  man,  upon 
whom  was  laid  only  one  negative  commandment,  and  he  transgressed  it ; 
see  how  many  deaths  were  inflicted  upon  him  and  upon  his  generations, 
and  upon  the  generations  of  his  generations  to  the  end  of  his  generations, 
and  which  attribute  is  greater,  the  attribute  of  goodness  or  the  attribute 
of  vengeance  ?  He  saith,  the  attribute  of  goodness.  If  the  attribute  of 
vengeance  be  the  less,  see  how  many  deaths  were  inflicted  upon  him  and 
on  his  generations,  and  on  the  generations  of  his  generations  unto  Ihe 
end  of  all  generations.  He  who  turneth  fi-om  the  unclean  (biJE  Lev.  vii.  18) 
and  from  that  which  remaineth  over  [of  the  sacrifice]  ("im:n  Lev.  vii.  16, 17), 
and  hum))leth  himself  on  the  day  of  atonement,  how  much  more  does  he 
merit  for  himself  and  for  his  generations,  and  for  the  generations  of  his 
generations  until  the  end  of  all  generations  ! '  Admitting  fully  the  right  of 
the  Jews  to  adapt  their  texts  for  their  own  private  use,  and  to  erase  the 
mention  of  'the  merits  of  the  Messiah'  when  they  no  longer  believed  them, 
the  omission  seems  to  me  to  have  spoiled  the  argument.  As  it  stanf's  in 
Martini,  the  contrast  is  clear,  between  the  one  sin  of  one  hitherto  sinless 
[Adam]  and  the  merit  of  the  Sinless  Sufferer.  But  since  every  righteous 
man  has  committed  many  more  sins  than  Adam,  there  is  no  contrast 
between  his  one  disobedience  and  their  observance  of  a  few  commands. 
To  me  it  seems  inconceivable,  that  a  mind  which  could  conceive  so  grand 
a  contrast  as  that  between  God's  attributes  of  justice  and  mercy  could 
have  sunk  to  so  poor  a  contrast,  and  have  imagined  (contrary  to  fact) 
that  two  or  three  ritual  observances  could  have  been  meritorious  for  all 
generations,  whereas  Ezekiel  declares,  that  the  father's  observance  of  the 
moral  law  would  not  avail  to  the  son  who  habitually  broke  it.  The  passage, 
as  it  stands  in  the  printed  text,  seems  to  me  to  indicate  an  omission,  such 
as  Martini's  text  supplies,  'the  merit  of  the  Messias'  being  a  known  phrase 
(see  note  ^).  Again  Martini's  observation,  '  It  is  much  to  be  noted,  that 
the  Targum  says,  "  The  Lord  says  to  his  Word,"  when  David  said,  "  The 
Lord  .said  unto  my  Lord,'"  the  present  text  having  'by  his  Word,'  not 
'to  his  Word,' is  quoted  as  'a  fair  sample  of  Martini's  comments.'     Yet 


Ixxvi       INTRODUCTION    TO   THE    ENGLISH    TRANSLATION. 


Martini's  text,  which  was  also  independently  that  of  Hieronymus  k  S.  Fide, 
and  produced  in  a  discussion  (c.  Jud.  i.  8.  init.  B.  P.  xxvi.  i;39),  has  the 
advantage,  that  it  w  a  paraphrase,  which  the  printed  text  is  not.  In  the 
printed  text,  there  is  no  Hebrew  to  correspond  to  the  paraphrase  '  by  his 
word,'  and  no  Chaldee  to  correspond  to  the  words  paraphrased  '  to  my  Lord.' 
In  Martini's  text,  the  Hebrew  and  Ch;ddee  correspond.  The  idea  of  the 
Priesthood  of  the  Word  was  known  to  the  Jews.  Philo  saj's,  '  There  are, 
it  seemeth,  two  temples  of  God.  The  one  is  this  world,  in  which  also  there 
is  a  high-priest.  His  First  Begotten  Divine  Word  ».'  I  have  no  doubt  that 
n'iDoa  crept  into  the  modern  text  as  the  common  phrase,  whereas  there  is 
no  occasion  elsewhere  for  the  dative,  which  is  in  this  place  a  paraphrase  for 
the  Hebrew  dative. 


I 


»  De  Somniis,  0pp.  i.  653,  Mang. 


I.    THE   SEPTUAGINT,   AQUILA,    SYMMACHUS, 
AND  THEODOTION. 

LII.  "Behold  my  servant  a  shall  have  iinclerstandingl^,  and 
shall  be  exalted  and  glorified^  exceedingly.  ^*In  what  manner 
many  will  be  astonished  ^  at  thee,  so  dishonoured  will  thy  form 
be  of  men,  and  thy  glory  e  of  the  sons  of  menf,  ^^  so  shall 
many  nations  marvels  at  him,  and  kings  shall  holdli  their 
moutli :  because  those  to  Avhom  it  had  not  been  told  concerning 
him  will  see,  and  those  who  have  not  heard  will  understand. 

LIII.  ^Lord,  who  believed  our  report?  and  to  whom 
was  the  arm  of  the  Lord  revefiled  ?  ^We  announced  [him] 
as  it  were  a  child  before  him,  [he  was]  like  a  root  in  a  thirsty 
land*.  He  hath  no  form  nor  gloryJ:  and  we  saw  him,  and  he 
had  no  form  nor  beauty,  but  his  form^  was  ^without  honour 
and  fading  away  beyond  [any  of]  the  sons  of  men  l ;  a  man  set 
in  a  plague,  and  knowing  how  to  carry  sickness  °i,  because  his 
countenance    is  turned  away  from  himn,  he  was  dishonoured 

*  A.  S.  my  slave.       ^  A.  shall  be  made  to  possess  knowledge.      «  A.  S.  Th. 

shall  be  lifted  up  and  held  on  high.      <iTh.  marvelled.       »  A.  his  visage 

and  his  form.  '  S.  beyond  the  sons  of  men.  e  A.  Th.  he  will  sprinkle  ;  S. 
he  will  fling  away.  h  A.  close  up.  »  A.  he  shall  come  up  (or,  shall  be  told  of ) 
like  a  child  receiving  suck  before  his  face,  and  like  a  root  out  of  the  impass- 
able land ;  S.  he  came  up  like  a  shoot  before  him,  and  like  a  root  out  of  the 
thirsty  land  ;  Th.  he  will  come  up  like  a  sucking  child  before  him,  and  like 
a  root  in  the  thirsty  land.  J  A.  distinction.  ^  S.  he  had  no  form  or  reputa- 
tion that  we  might  know  him,  neither  looks  that  we  might  desire  him.  •  S. 
set  at  nought,  and  the  most  insignificant  of  men.  ™  A.  a  man  of  pains  and 
known  to  illness ;  S.  a  man  full  of  labour  and  known  to  disease ;  Th.  a  man 
of  paini  and  known  to  sickness.         °A.  his  face  was  as  though  hidden. 

B 


2  THE    SEPT.,    AQ.,    S\MM.,    AND    THEOD.  [liii.  4- 

and  esteemed  noto.  *This  man  carries  our  sins,  and  is  pained 
for  us,  and  we  thought  that  he  was  in  labour,  and  in  a  plague, 
and  in  affliction  i'.  ^But  he  was  wounded  for  our  sins,  and 
made  sick  a  for  our  transgressions  :  the  chastisement  of  our  peace 
was  upon  him,  by  his  stripes  we  were  healed.  *  All  we  like  sheep 
went  astray r,  each  man  wandered  on  his  own  way:  and  the 
Lord  delivered  him  over  to  our  sins^,  ''and  he  by  reason  of  his 
being  afflicted*  openeth  not  his  mouth:  like  a  sheep  be  was 
led  to  the  slaughter",  and  as  a  lamb  dumb  before  her  shearer, 
so  he  openeth  not  his  mouth.  ^In  his  humiliation  his  judg- 
ment was  taken  away :  his  generation  who  shall  declare  1 
because  his  life  is  taken  from  the  earth,  for  the  iniquities  of  my 
people  he  was  led  off  to  death ^^  ^And  I  will  give^  the  wicked'^ 
for  his  grave  and  the  rich  for  his  death  :  because  he  did  no 
iniquity,  neither  [uttered]  deceit  with  his  mouth.  ^**And  the 
Lord  desireth  to  purify  himy  from  his  plague z;  if  ye  give  [an 
offering]  for  sin,  your^^  soul  shall  see  a  long-lived  seed. 
The  Lord  also  desireth l>^  to  take  away^'c  "from  the  labour 
of  his  soul,  to  shew  him  light  and  form  [him]  with  intelli- 
gence ^'J,  to  justify  the  just  that  serveth  many  well^e;  and 
their  sins^  he  will  bear  eg.      ^'^  Therefore  shall  he  have  many 

0  Th.  and  we  esteemed  him  not.  p  S.  Surely  he  took  up  our  sins,  and 

endured  our  labours  :  but  it  thought  him  to  be  under  the  touch  [of  leprosy] 
(A. '  touched  /  Th.  'beaten '),  plagued  by  God  ('  by  God  '  also  in  A.  Th.),  and 

humiliated.         ^  A.  he  was  defiled  by  reason  of  our  defections,  bruised 

"■  A.  verged  aside  ;  S.  turned  off;  Th.  inclined  away.  *  S.  and  the  Lord 

made  the  iniquity  of  us  all  to  meet  upon  him.  '  ^.  he  was  brought  near,  and 
he  was  obedient.  "  S.  to  sacrifice.  ^  S.  for  he  was  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of 
the  living,  and  for  the  injustice  of  my  people  there  was  a  plague  upon  them ; 
Th.  because  he  was  cut  off  from  the  land  of  the  living,  on  account  of  the 
defection  of  my  people  he  touclied  them.  '"  A.  S.  Th.  he  will  give.  *  S.  the 
impious.  y  S.  to  have  mercy  on  him.  '  S.  in  his  wounding.  ""A.  S.  Th. 
his.  ''''A.  Th.  insert  by  his  hand.  ""  S.  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord  shall 

prosper  in  his  hand.  ^^  A.  S.  Th.  he  shall  see,  shall  be  filled  (S. '  satiated ') 
in  his  knowledge.  '"  S.  that  ministereth  to  many.  "  S.  impieties. 

SK  A.  shall  carry  ;  S.  shall  take  up  ;  Th.  took  up. 


-liii.   12.]  THE    SEPT.,    AQ.,    SYMM.,    AND    THEOD.  3 

for  his  inheritance,  and  shall  divide  the  spoils^'*'  of  the 
strong ;  because  his  soul  was  delivered  over  unto  death,  and 
he  was  numbered"  amongst  the  transgressors .ii,  and  because 
he  bore'^'^  the  sins  of  many,  and  for  their  transgressions  was 
delivered  uj)'!. 


''''  A.  booty.        "  A.  S.  was  counted.        JJ  Th.  held  aloof  from  the  impious. 
^^  A.  took  away  ;  S.  Th.  took  on  him.        i'  S.  resisted  the  disobedient. 


\\\\.z.a.vq'<f^(i\aii€v.  Cf.  the  note  below  on  ver.  1 1  TrAdaaj.  5.  A.  l3fPT]\ai- 
fiivos.  The  word  is  regarded  as  connected  with  \^rr,  bh :  we  shall  find  the 
same  view  recur  in  some  of  the  other  commentators.  7.  Trpoa-qvexOrj,  i.  e. 

tea  for  is:: :  cf.  i  Sam.  .xiii.  6  LXX.  8.  tls  ddvarov.     It  is  possible,  as 

Frankel  conjectures  (Vorstiulien  zu  der  Sept.,  184I,  p.  215),  that  id"?,  falling 
perhaps  at  the  end  of  a  line,  or  having  accidentally  a  stroke  after  the  1  ('iDb), 
was  incorrectly  taken  by  the  translators  as  an  abbreviation  for  mrDb,  i.e. 
to  death:  Frankel  compares  Hos.  xiv.  3  {nap-nov  for  D'TD),  Ps.  iii.  8,  Num. 
vii.  88  ('id  or  'no  resolved  wrongly  into  miE).  10.  KaOapiaai.    From  the 

sense  attaching  to  N3T  in  Aramaic  (Chaldee  and  Syriac),  where  it  is  equiva- 
lent to  the  Heb.  ns;  to  he  dear  or  pure.  It  is  no  uncommon  occurrence  for 
LXX  to  interpret  a  Hebrew  word  in  accordance  with  the  signification  borne 
by  a  word  externally  resembling  it  in  the  Aramaic  dialect  spoken  at  the  time 
when  the  translation  was  made.  Cf.,  for  example,  Ps.  vii.  3  \vTpovfj.ivov, 
li.  6  viKT)aTis,  Ix.  10  e\iri5os,  Ixi.  8  t'is,  Ixix.  21,  civ.  II ;  Is.  xxxviii.  13  irape- 
S66r]v;  Nah.  iii.  8  kroifmaai ;  Qoh.  i.  17  irpoaipeais,  ii.  8  olvoxoov  Kot  oivox^as, 
12  povXrj.  10.  Tpav^aTt(r^a)(S.),'7nn  being  connected  with  ^bn.  11,  irKaaai. 
yaw  (if  read  as  Hif.)  might  naturally  be  rendered  by  TrXfjffai :  and  it  was  sug- 
gested long  ago  by  L.  Cappellus  (quoted  by  Schleusner)  in  his  Notae  Criticae 
(1689),  p.  60  h,  that  the  latter  was  the  term  actually  used  by  the  translators, 
and  that  the  corruption  is  to  be  attributed  to  the  Greek  copyists.  There  are 
certainly  several  instances  in  LXX  of  corruptions  resembling  the  one 
before  us,  which  it  seems  reasonable  to  assign  to  this  source,  especially  if, 
as  is  sometimes  the  case,  the  alteration  was  in  any  way  facilitated  by  the 
nature  of  the  context.  In  the  Psalms  alone,  for  instance,  cf.  iv.  8  Kapnov  for 
Kuipov,  xvii.  14  ve'iQiv  for  vlSii'  (both  suggested  by  the  context),  xxxi.  16  KKijpoi 
for  Katpoi,  xxxix.  6  TroAcuas  for  iraXataTas,  xliv.  13  d\a\dyfiaaiv  (?)  for 
dWdynaa-iv,  xlix.   9  eKowiaafv  for  tKorraaey,   Ixxviii.  54  al.     Cf.  also  Deut. 

B  2 


4  THE   SEPT.,    AQ,.,    SYMM.,    AND   THEOD.  [liii.  12. 

xxxiii.  78  eVi  yfjs  for  mj-yf),  I  Sam.  ix.  24.  Prov.  xxxi.  21  etc.,  and  Wellhausen, 
Der  Text  der  BB.  Samuelis  (1872),  p.  8,  who  cites  a  curious  instance  from 
Judg.  V.  8,  as  well  as  some  of  a  similar  nature  from  the  Peshito.  Whether  the 
same  explanation  can  be  adopted  for  ver.  2,  dvTjyydKafxfv  for  dv(T(iKe  (liv,  is 
doubtful.  fi\v  is  not  a  word  often  used  by  LXX,  and  certainly  does  not 
seem  required  there  :  it  seems  more  probable,  therefore,  especially  as  A.  has 
a  variant  avapprjOrjafTai,  that  their  rendering  originated  in  some  corruption  or 
obscurity  in  the  Hebrew  text  which  they  employed.  12.  0.  dirfaxfro, 

i.e.  rjo:. 


II.     THARGUM    OF  YONATHAN. 

LII.  ^^  Behold  my  servant  Messiah  shall  prosper ;  he  shall  be 
high,  and  increase,  and  be  exceeding  strong :  '*  as  the  house  of 
Israel  looked  to  him  during  many  days,  because  their  counte- 
nance was  darkened  among  the  peoples,  and  their  complexion 
beyond  the  sons  of  men,  ^^  so  will  he  scatter  many  peoples :  at 
him  kings  shall  be  silent,  and  put  their  hands  upon  their  mouth, 
because  that  which  was  not  told  them  have  they  seen,  and  that 
which  they  had  not  heard  they  have  observed. 

LIU.  ^Who  hath  believed  this  our  glad  tidings  ^  and  the 
strength  of  the  mighty  arm  of  the  Lord,  upon  whom  as  thus 
hath  it  been  revealed'?  ^  The  i-ighteous  will  grow  up  before 
him,  yea,  like  blooming  shoots,  and  like  a  tree  which  sends 
forth  its  roots  to  streams  of  water  *  will  they  increase — a  holy 
generation  in  the  land  that  was  in  need  of  him :  his  counte- 
nance no  profane  countenance,  and  the  terror  at  him  not 
the  terror  at  an  ordinary  man ;  his  complexion  shall  be  a  holy 
complexion,  and  all  who  see  him  will  look  wistfully  upon  him. 
'  Then  he  will  become  despised,  and  will  cut  off  the  glory  of  all 
the  kingdoms ;  they  will  be  prostrate  and  mourning,  like  a  man 
of  pains  and  like  one  destined  for  sicknesses ;  and  as  though  the 
presence  of  the  Shekhinah  had  been  Avithdrawn  from  us,  they 
will  be  despised,  and  esteemed  not.  *Then  for  our  sins  he 
will  pray,  and  our  iniquities  will  for  his  sake  be  forgiven, 
although  we  were  accounted  stricken,  smitten  from  before  the 
Lord,  and  afflicted.  ^  But  he  will  build  up  the  Holy  Place,  which 
has  been  polluted  for  our  sins,  and  delivered  to  the  enemy 
for    our    iniquities ;    and   by  his    instruction    peace    shall    be 

a  Cf.  Ez.  xxxi.  T,. 


6  THARGUM    OF   YONATHAN.  [Hii.  6-12. 

increased  upon  us,  and  by  devotion  to  his  words,  our  sins  will 
be  forgiven  us.  ®  All  we  like  sheep  had  been  scattered,  we  had 
each  wandered  off  on  his  own  way  ;  but  it  was  the  Lord's  good 
pleasure  to  forgive  the  sins  of  all  of  us  for  his  sake.  [J  lie  prayed, 
and  he  was  answered,  and  ere  even  he  had  opened  his  mouth 
he  was  accepted  :  the  mighty  of  the  peoples  he  will  deliver  up 
like  a  sheep  to  the  slaughter  and  like  a  lamb  dumb  before  her 
shearers;  there  shall  be  none  before  him  opening  his  mouth  or 
saying  a  word.  )*Out  of  chastisements  and  punishment  he  will 
bring  our  captives  near ;  the  wondi'ous  things  done  to  us  in 
his  days  who  shall  be  able  to  tell  1  for  he  will  cause  the 
dominion  of  the  Gentiles  to  pass  away  from  the  land  of  Israel, 
and  transfer  to  them  the  sins  which  my  people  have  committed. 
'  He  will  deliver  the  wicked  into  Gehinnom,  and  those  that  are 
rich  in  possessions  into  the  death  of  utter  destruction,  in  order 
that  those  who  commit  sin  may  not  be  established,  nor  speak 
deceits  with  their  mouth.  '°  But  it  is  the  Loi-d's  good  pleasure 
to  try  and  to  purify  the  remnant  of  his  people,  so  as  to  cleanse 
their  souls  from  sin  :  these  shall  look  on  the  kingdom  of  their 
Messiah,  their  sons  and  their  daughters  shall  be  multiplied,  they 
shall  prolong  their  days,  and  those  who  perform  the  Law  of  the 
Lord  shall  prosper  in  his  good  pleasure.  ^^  From  the  subjection 
of  the  nations  he  will  deliver  their  souls,  they  shall  look  upon 
the  punishment  of  those  that  hate  them,  and  be  satisfied  with 
the  spoil  of  their  kings  :  by  his  wisdom  he  will  hold  the  guilt- 
less free  from  guilt,  in  order  to  bring  many  into  subjection  to 
the  law;  and  for  their  sins  he  will  intercede.  ^-Then  will  I 
divide  for  him  the  spoil  of  many  peoples,  and  the  possessions 
of  strong  cities  shall  he  divide  as  prey,  because  he  delivered  up 
his  soul  to  death,  and  made  the  rebellious  subject  to  the  Law : 
he  shall  intercede  for  many  sins,  and  the  rebellious  for  his  sake 
shall  be  forgiven. 


III.     THALMUD. 

a.  Thalmud  of  Jerusalem. 
R.  Yonah  says,  It  is  written,  '  I  will  allot  him  a  portion  with  Sh'qaiim 

V,  I. 

the  many:'  this  refers  to  R.  'Aqibha'^,  who  introduced  the  study 
of  the  Midrash,  the  Ilalakhoth,  and  the  Haggadoth  '^. 

h.   Thalmud  of  Babylon. 
I.  The  Messiah — what  is  his  name^?  .  .  .  The  Rabbis  say,  The  PaTihedrin 

''  fol.  gS"". 

leprous  one  [;  those]  of  the  house  of  Rabbi  ^  [say,  The  sick  one], 
as  it  is  said,  '  Surely  he  hath  borne  our  sicknesses,'  etc. 

«■  R. ' Aqlbha  was  one  of  the  most  celebrated  Rabbis  of  the  school  of  Jabneh 
(Jamnia),  and  a  great  agitator  during  the  war  of  bar-Cokhebha  (bar-Coziba). 
He  is  considered  by  the  Jews  to  have  been,  like  Ezra,  a  restorer  of  the  law, 
and  is  even  sometimes  compared  to  Moses.  See  J.  Derenbourg,  Essai  sur 
Vhistoirc  et  la  geographie  de  la  Palestine,  Paris,  1867,  p.  396. 

^  Some  account  of  the  meaning  of  these  terms  may  be  found  in  Smith's 
Diet,  of  the  Bible,  iii.  1640  ;  or  Neubauer,  La  geographie  du  Talmud,  Paris, 
1868,  p.xiv. 

"  The  other  names  of  the  Messiah  mentioned  in  this  passage  are,  '  Shiloh' 
with  reference  to  Gen.  xlix.  10  '  until  Shiloh  come ;'  '  Yinnon  *  with  reference 
to  Ps.  Ixxii.  1 7  '  His  name  shall  endure  for  ever ;  before  the  sun  [was 
created]  his  name  was  Yinnon ;'  '  Haninah'  in  reference  to  Jer.  xvL  13 '  where 
no  Haninah  (favour)  will  be  given  (|n'  instead  of  ]ns  of  the  text,  which  was 
the  reading  of  the  earliest  translators)  to  you  ; '  '  M'nahem,'  son  of  Hezekiah, 
in  reference  to  Lam.  i.  16  '  the  Comforter  (M'nahem)  that  should  restore  my 
soul  is  far  from  me.'  See  for  the  text  of  this  passage,  as  well  as  for  some 
other  names  of  the  Messiah  according  to  a  3Iidrash,  Wiinsche,  Leiden  des 
Messias,  Leipzig,  1870,  p.  62  sqq. 

d  Rabbi,  '  master,'  is  the  title  of  R.  Yuda  the  Saint  (about  180  a.d.),  the 
redactor  of  the  Blishnah. 


8  THALMUD.  [liij  liii. 

•raiiiiotii       2.  Rabbae  states  on  the  authority  of  R.  S'horah  that  R.  Huna 
1. 5».  .  ..." 

said,  The  Holy  One  bruises  with  chastisement  every  cue  in  whom 

he  has  pleasure,  as  it  is  written,  'And  the  Lord  was  pleased  to 
bruise  him,  he  made  him  to  be  sick.'  It  might  however  be  thought, 
that  this  was  the  case  even  with  those  who  do  not  accept  the 
chastisement  willingly ;  tlie  words  are  therefore  added,  '  Tf  his 
soul  makes  a  ti'espass-ofTcring,'  for  as  the  '  trespass-offering '  im- 
plies a  knowledge  of  the  sin,  so  the  chastisement  to  come  by  the 
pleasure  of  God  ought  to  be  known  by  the  person  who  has  to 
receive  it.  When,  then,  he  had  received  them  so,  what  is  his 
reward?  'He  shall  see  seed,  and  lengthen  days;'  and  more- 
over that  the  study  of  the  law  shall  be  established  by  his  hands, 
as  it  is  written,  '  And  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord  shall  prosper  in 
his  hand.' 
sotah  3.  R.  Shimlai  ^  established  the  following  Midrash  :  Why  did 
Moses  our  Teacher  desire  to  enter  into  the  laud  of  Israel  1  was 
it  that  he  wanted  to  eat  of  its  fruit,  or  to  take  his  fill  of  its 
good  things  1  No  :  Moses  said,  Many  are  the  commandments 
enjoined  upon  Israel,  and  only  in  the  land  of  Canaan  can  they 
be  performed :  let  me,  then,  enter  the  land,  in  order  that  they 
may  all  be  performed  through  my  aid.  So  the  Holy  One  said 
to  him,  Dost  thou  seek  anything  except  to  receive  a  reward  1 
I  will  regard  thee  as  though  thou  hadst  performed  them  :  for 
thus  it  is  written,  '  Therefore  will  I  divide  him  a  portion  with  the 
great,'  etc.;  'I  will  divide  him  a  portion  among  the  great,' 
might  bear  the  meaning  like  those  who  come  last,  not  like  those 
^  who  come  first ;  it  is  therefore  added,  '  With  the  mighty  he  will 
divide  spoil,'  like  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  who  were  [the  first 
and]  mighty  in  the  law  and  the  commandments  :  '  because  he 
poured  out  his  soul  to  die,'  he  was  ready  to  die,  as  it  is  said, 
'But  if  not,  blot  me  I  pray  thee,'  etc.  (Ex.  xxxii.  32)  :  'he  was 
numbered  with  the  transgressors,'  for  he  was  numbered  with 


"  Halilia  was  a  Babylonian  doctor,  who  lived  about  260  a.  n. 

'   K.  Sliimlai  was  a  doctor  of  Palestine,  wlio  flourished  about  230  A.  D. 


lii,  liii.]  THALMUD.  9 

those  who  died  in  tlie  wilderness  :  '  he  bore  the  sin  of  many,' 
because  he  atoned  for  the  making  of  the  golden  calf  :  '  he  inter- 
ceded for  transgressors,'  because  he  sought  for  mercy  towards 
those  that  had  transgressed  in  Israel  that  they  might  turn  to 
repentance — for  yj3  means  merely  to  2^''^l/  '^^'  iiitercede,  as 
Jer.  vii.  i6. 

C.     MiDRASH    RaBBAH. 

Another  explanation  (of  Ruth  ii.  14) : — He  is  speaking  of  the  Huth  iv. 
king  Messiah  :  '  Come  hither,'  draw  near  to  the  throne  ;  '  and  eat 
of  the  bread,'  that  is,  the  bread  of  the  kingdom ;  '  and  dip  thy 
morsel  in  the  vinegar,'  this  refers  to  the  chastisements,  as  it  is 
said,  '  But  he  was  wounded  for  our  ti'ansgressions,  bruised  for  our 
iniquities.' 

/  have  eaten  my  honeycomb  with  my  honey  (Cant.  v.  i)  :  be-  "eut  xxin. 
cause  the  Israelites  poured  out «  their  soul  to  die  in  the  captivity, 
as  it  is  said,  '  Because  he  poured  out  his  soul  to  die.' 

d.    Yalqut. 

1.  Who  art  thou,  0  great  mountain  2  (Zech.  iv.  7.)    This  refers  ii.  57"- 
to  the  King  Messiah.     And  why  does  he  call  him  '  the  great 
mountain?'    because  he  is  greater  than  the  patriai'chs,  as  it  is 
said,  '  My  servant  shall  be  high,  and  lifted  up,  and  lofty  exceed- 
ingly ' — he  will  be  higher  than  Abraham,  who  says,  '  I  raise  high 

my  hands  unto  the  Lord'  (Gen.  xiv.  22);  lifted  up  above  Moses, 
to  whom  it  is  said,  ^  Lift  it  up  into  thy  bosom'  (Num.  xi.  12) ; 
loftier  than  the  ministering  angels,  of  whom  it  is  wi'itten,  '  Their 
wheels  were  lofty  and  terrible'  (Ez.  i.  18).  And  out  of  whom 
does  he  come  forth  ?     Out  of  David. 

2.  /  loill  tell  of  the  institution  (Ps.  ii.  7).     Ah'eady  are  the  ii.621. 
words  [concerning  my  servant]  told  in  the  institutions  of  the  Pen- 
tateuch, of  the  book  of  the  Prophets,  and  of  Hagiographa  :  in  the 

B  There  is  a  play  here  on  the  word  '\v  'honeycomb,'  which,  by  the  simi- 
larity of  sound,  recals  the  expression  miTi  '  pour  out,'  employed  by  Isaiah. 


10  THAI, MUD.  [lii.  liii. 

Pentateuch  where  are  tliey  told*?  'Israel  is  my  firstljorn '  (Ex. 
iv.  22)  ;  in  the  prophets,  wliere?  '  Behold  my  servant  will  deal 
prudently,'  and  near  to  it,  '  My  servant  whom  I  uphold '  (xlii.  i)  ; 
in  the  Hagiographa,  where  1  '  The  Lord  said  to  my  loi"d,'  and 
'  The  Lord  said  unto  me '  (Ps.  ex.  i,  ii.  7). 

ii.  620.  2.  '•0303  (Ps.  ii.  6).  According  to  another  view  this  means,  '  I 
have  woven  him  '>,'  cf.  nSDD  Jud.  xvi.  14  :  i.  e.  I  have  drawn  him 
out  of  the  chastisements.  R.  Huna,  on  the  authority  of  R.  Aha, 
says,  The  chastisements  are  divided  into  three  parts  :  one  for 
David  and  the  fathers,  one  for  our  own  generation,  and  one  for 
[the  King  Messiah ;  and  this  is  that  which  is  written,  '  He  was 
wounded  for  our  transgressions,'  etc. 

ii  338.  4.  Another  view^.  '  Therefore  I  will  divide  him  a  portion  with 
the  many,' — IMoses  will  come  at  the  head  of  every  assembly  what- 
ever, even  that  of  the  masters  of  the  Thalmud,  and  receive  with 
each  of  them  his  reward,  as  it  is  written,  *  And  he  came  at  the 
heads  of  the  people  '  (Deut.  xxxiii.  21). 

According  to  Raymund  Mariini. 

e.    SiPHREJ. 

R.  Yos6  the  Galilaean  said.  Come  forth  and  learn  the 
righteousness  of  the  King  Messiah  and  the  reward  of  the  just 
from  the  first  man  who  received  but  one  commandment,  a  pro- 
hibition, and  transgressed  it :  consider  how  many  deaths  were 
inflicted  upon  himself,  upon  his  own  generations,  and  upon  those 
that  followed  them,  till  the  end  of  all  generations.  Which 
attribute  is  the  greater,  the  attribute  of  goodness,  or  the  attri- 
bute of  vengeance  1     He  answered.  The  attribute  of  goodness  is 

^  'The  two  verbs  "ttdo  and  "703  are  here  interchanged,'  Wiinsche,  p.  73. 
For  the  rendering  'woven,'  cf.  Aquila  iSiaadfiijv,  Jerome  orditm  sum:  the 
verb  "|D3  is  treated  as  though  it  were  connected  with  "[30. 

'  This  passage  is  preceded  by  the  extract  from  the  Thalmud  of  Babylon, 
h.Z. 

J  Pugio  Fidci,  p.  674. 


Hi,  liii.]  THALMUD.  11 

the  greater,  and  the  attribute  of  vengeance  is  the  less ;  how  much 
more,  then,  will  the  King  Messiah,  who  endures  affliction  and 
pains  for  the  transgi-essors  (as  it  is  written,  '  He  was  wounded,' 
etc.)  justify  all  generations  !  and  this  is  what  is  meant  when  it  is 
said,  'And  the  Lord  made  the  iniquity  of  us  all  meet  upon  himl^.' 

/  ThanhumaI. 

R.  Nahman  says.  The  word  '  man '  in  the  passage,  Every  man  a  Numb.  i.  2. 
head  of  the  house  of  his  fathers  (Num.  i.  4),  refers  to  the  Messiah 
the  son  of  David,  as  it  is  written,  '  Behold  the  man  whose  name 
is  Zemah'  (the  branch) ;  where  Yonathan  interprets,  Behold  the 
man  Messiah  (Zeeh.  vi.  12) ;  and  so  it  is  said,  'A  man  of  pains' 
and  known  to  sickness. 

According  to  Sulsius^. 

g.    P'SIQTHA. 

The  Holy  One  brought  forth  the  soul  of  the  Messiah,  and  said 
to  him.  Art  thou  willing  to  be  created  and  to  redeem  my  sons 
after  6000  years  ?  He  replied,  I  am.  God  replied,  If  so,  thou 
must  take  upon  thyself  chastisements  in  order  to  wipe  away 
their  iniquity,  as  it  is  written,  '  Surely  our  sicknesses  he  hath 
carried.'  The  Messiah  answered,  I  will  tak€  them  upon  me 
gladly. 

^  The  argument  is  this :  If  Adam's  guilt  entailed  such  consequences  upon 
all  his  descendants,  and  the  attribute  of  vengeance  or  justice  is  still  not  so 
potent  as  that  of  mercy,  how  much  more  will  the  sufferings  of  the  IMessiah 
redound  to  the  advantage  of  all  mankind !  Compare  the  similar  reasoning 
of  St.  Paul,  Eom.  v.  15-19,  and  Delitzsch's  note,  in  his  interesting  edition  of 
this  Epistle  in  Hebrew  (Leipzig,  1870). 

1  Pugio  Fidei,  p.  664. 

"  Theologia  Judaica,  p.  328. 


IV.     ZOHAR. 

Section  aK>''1. 

He  began  and  said,  Behold  my  servant,  etc.  Happy  is  the 
portion  of  the  just,  to  whom  the  Holy  One  reveals  the  paths  of 
the  law  for  them  to  walk  in  !  Come,  consider  the  exalted 
mystery  of  this  verse,  as  it  has  been  explained  before :  when 
the  Holy  One  created  the  world,  he  made  for  it  the  moon,  and 
caused  its  light  to  be  small,  since  it  had  none  of  its  own  at 
all ;  it  received  therefore  its  light  from  the  sun  and  through 
the  power  of  the  upper  luminaries.  During  the  time  that  the 
sanctuary  was  standing,  Israel,  the  priests,  the  Levites,  and 
the  people  never  ceased  offering  gifts  and  burnt-sacrifices  and 
other  rites,  tying  knots  f'',  continuing  blessings,  and  keeping 
up  perpetual  light.  But  after  the  sanctuary  was  desolated,  the 
light  became  dark  and  the  moon  was  no  longer  illumined  by 
the  sun  (for  the  sun  was  withdrawn  and  shone  no  more) ;  nor 
was  there  any  day  over  which  curses  and  afflictions  and  pains, 
according  to  the  saying  of  the  Rabbis,  did  not  hold  sway.  Of  that 
time,  however,  when  the  day  shall  arrive  for  the  moon  to  shine, 
the  passage  speaks,  which  is  a  mystery  of  faith,  '  Behold  my 
servant  shall  deal  prudently' — my  sei'vant,  viz.  who  suddenly 
wakes  and  starts  up  as  one  who  smells  a  (sweet)  savour  and 
rouses  himself  up  to  contemplate  it.  He  will  be  high,  above  the 
upper  light  of  (all)  the  luminaries,  as  it  is  >vi'itten, '  He  will  be  high 
that  he  may  have  mercy  on  you'  (Is.  xxx.  iS)  :  he  will  be  lifted 

»  This  refers  to  the  knots  of  the  phylacteries ;  sec  Thahiiud  of  Babylon, 
B'rakhnth,  fol.  6». 


lii,  liii.]  ZOHAK.  13 

up  above  Abraham  ;  lofty  above  Isaac  ;  exceedingly  above 
Jacob.  Although  this  passage  has  been  explained  [otherwise], 
still  in  the  mystery  of  wisdom  all  is  one.  At  that  time  the  Holy 
One  will  suddenly  wake  up  to  give  her  proper  light  to  the 
moon,  as  it  is  written,  '  The  light  of  the  moon  shall  be  as  the 
light  of  the  sun'  (Is.  xxx.  26).  And  because  a  spirit  from  on  high 
will  be  added  to  it,  therefore  all  the  dead  who  are  in  the  dust 
will  then  awake.  This  is  the  mystery  of  '  my  servant,'  in  whose 
hands  are  the  keys  of  his  lord,  as  were  Abraham's  in  those 
of  Eliezer  (Gen.  xxiv.  2),  who  is  called  his  servant;  such  also 
will  be  the  case  with  the  moon,  which,  as  is  said  elsewhere,  is  the 
Metatron  ^,  the  servant  sent  forth  of  its  lord. .  .  .  These  bodies  (are 
those  which),  as  we  have  said,  are  appointed  to  rise  first  :  after 
they  have  risen,  all  the  rest  in  the  other  countries  will  rise,  and 
will  live  in  a  perfect  existence,  and  be  renewed  at  the  renovation 
of  the  moon  ;  the  world,  too,  will  be  made  new  as  at  the 
beginning.  It  is  of  that  time  that  the  words  are  written,  '  The 
Lord  will  rejoice  in  his  works'  (Ps.  civ.  31)  :  and  therefore  also 
it  is  said  here,  '  My  servant  will  deal  prudently,'  in  restoring, 
namely,  the  soul  of  each  one  to  its  place.  He  will  be  high  and 
lifted  up  and  lofty  exceedingly,  above  all  the  topmost  ranks,  as 
we  have  explained  it  above. — As  many  were  astonished,  etc. 
Come,  consider  what  has  been  said  :  when  the  sanctuary  was 
laid  desolate    and  the  Shekhiuah  carried  captive  into  strange 


•*  On  the  '  Metatron '  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  Lexica  of  Buxtorf  or 
Levy,  s.  v.  In  one  of  the  two  Jerusalem  Thargums  on  Gen.  v.  24  it  is  said 
that  Enoch  'ascended  up  into  heaven  by  the  word  of  the  Lord,  and  his  name 
was  called  Metatron,  the  great  scribe;'  and  in  the  other,  Deut.  xxxiv.  6,  he  is 
said  to  have  been  one  of  the  four  '  princes  of  wisdom'  who  helped  to  bury 
Moses.  In  Rabbinical  writings  he  is  spoken  of  as  C'Dcn  ^^'C,  the  angel  who, 
while  others  received  their  commands  '  without  the  veil,'  had  access  to 
the  immediate  presence  of  God,  where  it  was  his  duty  to  sit  and  write  do*n — 
or  cancel — the  merits  of  the  people  of  Israel.  Sometimes  the  word  is  used 
more  generally  of  a  messenger  or  guide ;  and  in  fact  such  seems  to  be  the 
case  here. 


14  ZOHAK.  [lii,  liii. 

lands  amongst  the  heathen,  what  do  we  find  written  1  '  Behold 
their  strong  men  cry  in  the  street,  the  messengers  of  peace  weep 
bitterly'  (Is.  xxxiii.  7) ;  all  weep  for  this,  and  join  in  lamenta- 
tion and  monrning  for  the  Shekhinah  carried  into  captivity. 
And  as  the  moon  was  changed  from  what  she  had  been,  so  also 
her  master  no  longer  gave  his  light,  but  was  changed  likewise, 
as  it  is  written,  '  The  sun  was  dark  in  his  going  forth'  (Is. 
xiii.  10)  :  and  it  is  to  this  that  the  words  refer,  '  So  marred  was 
his  countenance  beyond  man.'  According,  however,  to  another 
explanation,  the  '  countenance'  is  that  of  the  servant  (the  moon), 
whose  form  and  features  were  changed  from  what  they  once 
were.  And  according  to  a  third,  it  is  the  heavens  that  are 
meant,  which  after  the  sanctuary  had  been  laid  waste,  no  longer 
preserved  their  original  form  :  and  so  it  is  written  (Is.  1.  3), 
'  I  will  clothe  the  heavens  with  blackness,  and  will  make  sack- 
cloth their  covering.' 

Section  Snp''1. 

Happy  is  the  portion  of  the  just  in  this  world  and  in  that 
which  is  to  come  1  The  souls  which  are  in  the  garden  of  Eden 
below  go  to  and  fro  every  new  moon  and  sabbath,  in  order  to 

ascend  to  the  place  that  is  called  the  Walls  of  Jerusalem 

After  that  they  journey  on  and  contemplate  all  those  that  are 
possessed  of  pains  and  sicknesses  and  those  that  are  martyrs  for 
the  unity  of  their  Lord,  and  then  return  and  announce  it  to  the 
Messiah.  And  as  they  tell  him  of  the  misery  of  Israel  in  their 
captivity,  and  of  those  wicked  ones  among  them  who  are  not 
attentive  to  know  their  Lord,  he  lifts  up  his  voice  and  weeps 
for  their  wickedness  :  and  so  it  is  Avritten,  '  He  was  wounded 
for  our  transgressions,'  etc.  Then  those  souls  return  and  abide 
in  their  own  place.  There  is  in  the  garden  of  Eden  a  ■  palace 
called  the  Palace  of  the  sons  of  sickness  :  this  palace  the 
Messiah  then  enters,  and  summons  every  sickness,  every  pain, 
and  every  chastisement  of  Israel ;  they  all  come  and  rest  upon 
him.     And  were   it  not  that  he  had  thus  lightened  them  off 


lii,  liii.]  ZOHAR.  15 

Israel  and  taken  them  upon  himself,  there  had  been  no  man 
able  to  bear  Israel's  chastisements  for  transgression  of  the  law  : 
and  this  is  that  which  is  written,  '  Surely  our  sicknesses  he  hath 
carried.' 

Section  NVn  '3. 

In  this  Parashah,  0  faithful  shepherd  [Moses],  God  speaks  of 

thy  gathering  to  the  other  world But  here  there  is  a 

gi'eat  mystery,  in  being  buried,  namely,  in  unseemly  fashion,  in 
a  '  dry  land  where  no  water  is '  ('  water'  here  signifying  the 
law),  without  form  or  beauty.  Whoever  looks  at  this  kind  of 
burial  [exclaims],  *  We  see  him,  but  he  has  no  form  that  we 
should  desire  him  :'  therefore  this  prophecy.  Behold  my  servant, 

etc.,  alludes  to  him Where  thy  bride  is,  there  thou  shalt  be 

united  with  her,  like  a  true  bridegroom.  Hadst  thou  not  been 
buried  out  of  the  Holy  Land,  and  far  from  thy  bride,  Israel 
would  never  have  come  forth  from  captivity ;  and  therefore  it  is 
said,  77"inD  Xini — 'thou  wast  made  2)rofa7ie'  [from  7n]  in  thy 
burial <=  for  tlie  transgressions  and  iniquities  of  Israel. 

Section  DniQ. 

Tlie  children  of  the  world  are  members  one  of  another.  When 
the  Holy  One  desires  to  give  healing  to  the  world,  he  smites 
one  just  man  amongst  them,  and  for  his  sake  heals  all  the  rest- 
Whence  do  we  learn  this  1  From  the  saying, '  He  was  wounded 
for  our  transgressions,  bruised  for  our  iniquities,'  127  N313  in">13n21, 
i.  e.  by  the  letting  of  his  blood — as  when  a  man  bleeds  his  arm — 
there  was  healing  for  us — for  all  the  members  of  the  body.  In 
general  a  just  person  is  only  smitten  in  order  to  procure  healing 
and  atonement  for  a  whole  generation  :  and  this  is  the  mystery 
of  the  saying.  There  is  a  just  man  and  it  goes  ill  with  him, 
[a  wicked  man  and  it  goes  well  with  him*!.] 


<=  By  being  buried,  namely,  away  from  the  Holy  Land. 

d  Cf.  Thalmud  of  Babylon,  E'lakliotli,  fol.  7",  Wunsche,  p.  loi. 


16  ZOHAR.  [Hi,  liii. 

Section  Dn33. 

At  the  time  when  the  Holy  One  desires  to  atone  for  the  sins 
of  the  world,  like  a  physician  who  to  save  the  other  limbs, 
bleeds  the  arm,  he  smites  their  arm  and  heals  their  whole 
person  :  as  it  is  written,  '  He  was  wounded  for  our  ini- 
quities,' etc. 

Section  NVD  '•3. 

Tliy  bride  [i.  c.  the  law],  0  faithful  shepherd,  was  given 
by  the  Holy  One  to  Abraham  ....  and  to  Isaac  ....  that 
she  might  be  true  to  thee  at  the  time  when  thou  comest  to  her 
at  the  last  redemption,  as  it  is  written,  '  That  which  was,  is  that 
which  shall  be'  (Eecl.  i.  9).  Because  they  (Israel)  produced  and 
wrought  good  things  for  thee,  thou  hast  borne  for  their  sakes 
ever  so  many  strokes  in  order  that  i^Iessiah  the  son  of  Joseph 

might  not  be  slain And  therefore  it  is  written,  '  He  was 

wounded  for  our   transgressions,  and   by  his  stripes  we  were 
t  healed.' 

Section  NVn  '•3. 

^  ....  the  faithful  shepherd,  of  whom  it  is  said,  'And  the  man 
Moses  was  exceedingly  afflicted'  (Num.  xii.  3),  for  he  bore  the 
weight  of  the  sixty  myriads  of  Israel.  Of  him,  too,  it  is  written, 
'  From  the  place  of  his  habitation  he  looked  forth'  (Ps.  xxxiii.  14). 
And  also,  with  reference  to  the  generation  of  the  second  cap- 
tivity, '  But  the  Lord  laid  upon  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all.' 

Section  N"iS1. 

Come,  consider  the  congregation  of  Israel,  how  it  is  called 
a  larnh,  as  it  is  said,  '  Like  a  lamb  that  before  her  shearers  is 
dumb,'  Why  was  it  dumb  1  Because  while  the  other  nations 
ruled  over  it,  it  was  deprived  of  speech  and  made  dumb. 


V.     R.  SA'ADYAH   GAON. 

LII.  "Behold  my  messenger  shall  have  understanding,  and 
shall  be  high  and  exalted  and  lofty  exceedingly.  "And  as 
many  will  be  desolated  at  him,  so  will  his  countenance  be  marred 
beyond  any  of  them,  and  his  form  beyond  the  sons  of  Adam  : 
^^and  so  wall  he  scatter  many  nations;  at  him  kings  shall  shut 
their  mouths  :  for  they  will  have  seen  things  such  as  had  not 
been  told  to  them,  they  will  consider  that  of  which  they  had 
never  heard  the  like. 

LIII.  MVho  hath  believed  this  our  report  1  and  upon  whom 
will  the  might  of  God  be  revealed  ?  -Who  before  this  will  grow 
up  like  a  sucker,  and  like  a  solitary  root  out  of  the  dry  gi-ound, 
which  has  no  form  nor  comeliness,  and  when  we  see  it  has 
no  looks  so  that  we  should  desire  it  1  ^So  is  he  despised  and 
cut  off  from  men ;  possessed  of  pains  and  known  to  sickness, 
and  like  one  before  whom  faces  are  hidden ;  so  he  is  despised 
and  we  esteem  him  not.  *  Surely  he  carried  our  sicknesses,  and 
bare  our  pains  :  and  we  did  esteem  him  afflicted,  smitten  of 
God,  and  punished.  ^But  he  was  wounded  for  our  transgi-es- 
sions,  bruised  for  our  iniquities ;  his  destruction  is  our  compen- 
sation ;  and  by  his  stripes  we  are  healed.  "  All  we  like  sheep 
had  gone  astray,  and  everj'  one  had  turned  to  his  own  way  ; 
and  God  laid  upon  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all.  ''  He  was 
tossed  to  and  fro,  and  he  w^as  punished,  yet  he  opened  not 
his  mouth;  like  a  lamb  which  is  led  to  the  slaughter  and  like  a 
sheep  which  before  her  sheai'ers  is  dumb,  so  he  opened  not 
his  mouth.      *From  prison  and  from  judgment  he  was  snatched 

c 


18  R.  sa'adyah  gaon.  [liii.  9-12. 

away,  and  who  sliall  declare  anything  concerning  his  genera- 
tion 1 — until  he  was  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of  life,  and  for 
the  transgression  of  my  people  the  stroke  was  upon  them.  "And 
he  made  his  gi-ave  with  the  evildoers,  desiring  to  die,  and  with 
the  rich  in  his  death,  although  he  had  done  no  violence, 
neither  was  there  any  deceit  in  his  mouth.  ^"  And  God  was  pleased 
to  make  him  afraid  and  sicken  him,  —  if  his  soul  becomes 
a  trespass-offering  for  sin,  and  he  sees  a  noble  seed,  his  time 
[of  life]  will  be  long,  and  God's  pleasure  shall  prosper  in  his 
hand.  '^And  from  the  travail  of  his  soul  he  shall  see  a  reward, 
and  shall  be  satisfied  by  it,  and  by  his  understanding  shall  the 
righteous,  as  also  my  messenger,  justify  many,  and  he  will 
bear  their  iniquities.  '^  Therefore  I  will  give  him  a  portion  with 
the  great,  and  he  shall  divide  spoil  with  the  strong,  because  he 
laid  bare  his  soul  unto  death,  and  [was  numbered]  *  with  the 
transgressors  [;  and  he  bare  the  sin  of  many,  and]  <■*  made  inter- 
cession [for  the  transgressors]  ». 

*  The  copyist  evidently  passed  the  words  between  the  two    .j_JL«lj. 


VI.     YEPHETH    BEN    'ALL 

LII.  ^^The  commentators  differ  concerning  this  section.  The 
Fayyumi^  lost  his  senses  in  applying  it  to  the  prophets  generally, 
or,  according  to  some  authorities,  in  supposing  that  it  I'efcrred 
to  Jeremiah  in  particular.  His  explanation  is  not  indeed  of 
a  kind  towards  which  any  one  would  feel  attracted:  and  we 
shall  shew  the  manner  in  wliich  it  may  be  refuted:  for  this 
man  attempted  the  task  of  interpreting  the  book  of  the  pro- 
phets upon  a  plan  of  evolving  their  meaning  out  of  his 
own  head,  and  consequently  failed  to  arrive  at  any  consistent 
view.  Some  of  the  learned  Qaraites  apply  the  prophecy  to 
the  pioust>  of  their  own  sect,  resting  their  view  upon  two 
arguments  :  In  the  first  place,  because  their  histoiy  answers 
to  the  descriptions  given  in  this  section ;  and  secondly,  because 
of  the  word  "ID^,  which  is  plural.  Others  of  them  think  the 
subject  of  it  to  be  David  and  the  Messiah,  saying  that  all  the 
expressions  of  contempt,  such  as  '  many  were  desolated  at  thee,' 
refer  to  the  seed  of  David  who  are  in  exile ;  and  all  the  glorious 
things,  such  as  '  behold  my  servant  will  be  prosperous  '  and  '  so 
shall  he  sprinkle,'  refer  to  the  Messiah.  As  to  myself,  I  am 
inclined,  with  Benjamin  of  Nehawend,  to  regard  it  as  alluding  to 
the  Messiah,  and  as  opening  with  a  description  of  his  condition 
in   exile,  from  the  time  of  his  birth  to   his  accession  to  the 


*  R.  Sa'adyali  Gaon  of  Fay  yum. 

I'  The  early  Qaraites  applied.the  term  D'r  3CO  (Dan.  xii.  3)  to  the  members 
of  their  own  sect,  in  particular,  to  those  dwelling  in  Jerusalem  ;  see  Neubauer; 
Aus  der  Pdersharger  Bibliotheh,  p.  7. 

C  2 


20  YEPHETH    BEN    'aLI.  [Hi.  13- 

throne  :  for  the  prophet  begins  by  speaking  of  his  being  seated 
in  a  position  of  great  honour,  and  then  goes  back  to  relate  all 
that  will  happen  to  him  during  the  captivity.  He  thus  gives  us 
to  understand  two  things  :  In  the  first  instance,  that  the  Mes- 
siah will  only  reach  his  highest  degree  of  honour  after  long  and 
severe  trials ;  and  secondly,  that  these  trials  will  be  sent  upon 
him  as  a  kind  of  sign,  so  that,  if  he  finds  himself  under  the 
yoke  of  misfortunes  whilst  rcnuiining  pure  in  his  actions,  he 
may  know  that  he  is  the  desired  one,  as  we  shall  explain  in 
the  course  of  the  section.  The  expression  '  my  servant'  is 
applied  to  the  jMessiah  as  it  is  applied  to  his  ancestor  in  the 
verse,  *  I  have  sworn  to  DaWd  my  servant'  (Ps.  Ixxxix.  4),  as 
we  have  already  explained  on  Is.  xli.  8*^.  The  prophet  mentions 
in  this  vei'se  four  grades  of  dignity  which  he  will  rise  to  suc- 
cessively :  I.  ?*3C,  which  describes  his  prosperity  at  the  begin- 
ning of  his  career,  when  he  will  be  victorious  in  war,  a  term 
used  also  for  his  forefather  David  (i  Sam.  xviii.  14);  2.  D"l">% 
which  means  he  will  sit  upon  the  throne  of  Israel  at  the  time 
when  our  lord  Elijah  will  anoint  him, — this  also  is  applied 
to  David  (Ps.  Ixxxix.  20) ;  3.  NtJ'JI,  referring  to  the  time  when 
he  will  reign  over  the  entire  world,  as  it  is  said,  '  Let  him  have 
dominion  from  sea  to  sea'  (Ps.  Ixxii.  8);  4.  *1X»  n331,  which 
means  he  will  reach  the  highest  rank  possible ;  hence  the  addition 
of  the  word  HND.  In  having  the  last  two  expressions  applied  to 
him,  I  mean  n:j*3  and  n33,  the  Messiah  has  the  advantage  over 
his  ancestor,  as  we  have  explained  upon  Is.  ix.  6^. 

*  On  the  passage  referred  to  the  author  says  :  '  'Til-  is  employed  in  Scrip- 
ture in  three  senses  :  (i)  for  the  king,  who  holds  all  under  his  sway,  which  is 
the  most  common  signification  of  the  term ;  (2)  for  the  true  worshipper  of 
God,  such  as  Moses  (.Josh.  i.  2)  ;  (3)  for  the  servant  who  has  attained  a  posi- 
tion of  such  power  as  to  have  none  his  equal ;  and  in  this  sense  Nebuchad- 
nezzar is  called  "  my  servant"  (Jer.  xxv.  9,  xxvii.  5).  The  expression,  as  used 
of  Israel,  embraces  all  these  meanings.' 

''  On  this  passage  IJen  'Ali  writes  as  follows :  '  The  prophet  means  that 
the  dominion  of  the  Messiah  will  be  greater  than  that  of  any  other  king 
of  Israel ;    for   David  and  Solomon   ruled   over  Israel  and   the   kings   of 


-lii.  ir-]  YEPHETII    BEN   'aLI.  21 

^*  'As  many  were  desolated'  forms  here  the  protasis,  of  wliich 
'  so  shall  he  sprinkle'  is  the  apodosis.  His  condition  is  described 
as  being  such  that  any  one  seeing  him  would  be  desolated  at 
him,  on  account  of  the  sicknesses  whicli  had  befallen  him.  D^2"> 
signifies  the  great  men  who  knew  him.  The  prophet  explains 
to  them  the  cause  of  their  desolation  concerning  him  by  say- 
ing, '  His  countenance  was  marred  beyond  any  man,'  i.  e.  the 
complexion  of  his  face  was  so  changed  as  to  become  like  that 
of  a  corpse.  He  adds  fui-thei',  '  And  his  form  beyond  the 
sons  of  Adam,'  i.  e.  he  was  so  altered  in  form  as  to  resemble 
a  corpse :  and,  alluding  to  the  same  fact,  he  says,  towards  the 
end  of  the  section,  '  For  he  was  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of  the 
living.' 

^^'So  will  he  sprinkle'  is  the  continuation  of  'my  servant 
will  prosper,'  and  intended  to  describe  the  reward  which  he  will 
receive  in  this  world  as  a  return  for  the  many  having  been 
desolated  at  him.  ^  Blood  of  must  be  supplied  before  nations. 
'At  him  the  kings  shall  shut  their  mouth'  means  that  the  kings 
of  the  world  will  close  their  mouth  when  he  lays  a  command 
or  prohibition  upon  them.  The  next  words  admit  of  a  three- 
fold interpi'etation  :  i.  what  has  not  been  related  in  their  books 
and  what  they  have  not  heard  ft-om  their  instructors;  2.  what 
was  not  told  them  by  those  who  brought  tidings  concerning 

nations  which  surrounded  them,  but  the  dominion  of  Messiah  will  extend 
over  the  whole  world,  as  it  is  written,  "  Let  him  have  dominion  from 
sea  to  sea"  (Ps.  Ixxii.  8);  "Behold,  I  have  given  him  for  a  witness,  a 
prince,  and  a  commander  to  the  peoples  ;"  and  again,  "Behold,  thou  shalt 
call  a  nation  thou  knowest  not"  (Is.  Iv.  4,  5)  :  accordingly  the  prophet 
speaks  here  of  the  increase  of  his  government.  Moreover,  although  there 
was  peace  and  tranquillity  in  the  time  of  Solomon,  yet  after  his  death  the 
state  of  affairs  was  disturbed  and  reversed  ;  but  in  the  time  of  the  Messiah 
there  will  be  peace  over  the  whole  world,  as  it  is  written,  "Nation  shall  not 
lift  up  sword  against  nation  "  (Is.  ii.  4).  And  this  peace  will  have  no  end  :  for 
from  the  days  of  the  Messiah  to  the  end  of  all  generations  the  whole  world 
will  obey  God  and  his  anointed,  as  is  expressed  in  the  words,  "And  of  peace 
there  shall  be  no  end." ' 


22  YEPHETH    BEN    'aLI,  Qiii.  i- 

him,  like  the  saying  of  the  Queen  of  Sheba,  '  the  half  was  not 
told  to  me'  (i  Kings  xi.  7);  the  phrase  will  then  intimate  that 
his  glorious  reign  cannot  be  described ;  3.  (a  word  [iniDDJ 
must  here  be  supplied),  what  they  had  never  been  told  tlte  like 
of:  there  have  been  indeed  in  Israel  and  in  other  nations  kings 
of  whose  doings  they  have  heard,  but  when  they  witness  the 
reign  of  the  Messiah  they  will  know  that  there  was  never  any 
king  in  the  world  like  him. 

LIII.  'Here  begin  Israel's  words,  in  justification  of  the  lan- 
guage of  the  last  verse.  They  ask,  in  their  amazement,  Which  of 
the  nations  believed  the  report  that  was  amongst  us  ?  not  one 
of  them ;  for  they  all  agreed  that  there  would  be  for  Israel  no 
recovery.  '  Upon  whom  has  the  arm  of  the  Lord  been  revealed  1 ' 
i.  e.  through  which  nation  has  the  might  of  God  revealed  itself ; 
whom  nevertheless  each  one  of  them  boasts  to  be  his  master  and 
protector  ? 

^  Israel  turns  back  now  to  describe  the  manner  of  the  Messiah's 
birth,  comparing  him  to  a  young  twig  or  sucker  because  he  is 
one  of  the  children  of  David,  and  to  a  root  because  he  will  become 
a  root  like  his  father  David,  So  says  Ezekiel  (xvii.  22,  23), 
*  From  the  top  of  his  suckers  I  will  crop  off  a  tender  one  .  .  . 
and  it  shall  become  a  goodly  cedar.'  The  expression  'he  came 
up'  can  be  explained  in  two  ways  :  i.  He  came  up  out  of 
his  place  like  a  sucker  springing  out  of  a  tree  :  the  place 
intended  is  Jerusalem ;  therefore  it  is  said  *  before  him/  i.  e. 
before  the  Lord,  the  pronoun  relating  to  the  word  '  Lord '  in  the 
preceding  verse.  Or  2.  The  Messiah  came  up  out  of  captivity. 
He  then  adds,  '  And  like  a  root  out  of  the  dry  earth,'  meaning 
^hat  he  resembles  a  root  emerging,  sickly  and  weak,  out  of  the 
arid  soil.  This  comparison  relates  to  the  beginning  of  his  career  j 
and  the  same  is  the  case  with  the  words  '  he  had  no  form  nor 
pomeliness,'  which  in  no  way  refer  to  the  period  of  his  sickr 
ness.  In  this  respect  he  differs  from  his  forefather,  who  during 
the  time  that  he  was  king,  when  great  multitudes  gathered 
found  him,  and  he  was  consequently  well  known,  had  both  form 


-liii.  4.]  YEPHETH    BEN    'aLI.  23 

and  comeliness.  In  the  next  woixls  Israel  describes  how  when 
they  looked  at  him  they  saw  in  him  neither  majesty,  nor  come- 
liness, nor  beauty,  yet  they  desired  his  company,  instead  of  fleeing 
from  it  and  hiding  themselves,  as  the  words  in  the  verse  follow-" 
iiig  imply  that  they  did  afterwards. 

^  He  was  '  despised,'  i.  e.  humble  in  rank  on  account  of  his 
poverty,  '  holding  aloof  from  men,'  i.  e.  not  mixing  with  them 
in  their  banquets  and  amusements — a  natural  result  of  exile,  as 
it  is  said,  '  He  sitteth  alone  and  keepeth  silence '  (Lam.  iii.  28) — 
and  '  a  man  of  pains,'  i.  e.  afflicted  by  them,  his  sufferings  being 
distributed  under  two  heads :  i .  nUINDO,  signifying  external 
complaints,  like  pustules;  2.  vPI,  i.e.  internal  ones,  such  as  a 
fever.  '  Like  one  from  whom  there  is  a  hiding  of  faces'  may 
be  explained  in  two  ways :  i .  like  a  man  who  has  arrived  at 
such  a  condition  of  affliction  and  mutilation  that  men  hide  their 
faces  from  him  ;  2.  like  one  from  whom  God  had  withdrawn 
his  mercy,  i.  e.  his  blows  resemble  those  with  which  the  wicked 
are  afflicted.  The  repetition  of  the  word  nT33  can  also  be  ex- 
plained in  two  ways:  i.  despised  oxi  account  of  poverty,  and 
despised  in  rank ;  2.  despised  in  his  own  eyes,  as  it  is  said  of 
the  righteous  (Ps.  xv.  4),  '  He  is  despised  and  contemned  in  his 
own  eyes;'  and  despised  in  the  eyes  of  others,  as  they  say, 
'  And  we  esteemed  him  not,'  i,  e.  we  did  not  regard  him  as 
the  expected  one. 

*By  the  words  'surely  he  hath  carried  our  sicknesses,'  they 
mean  that  the  pains  and  sickness  which  he  fell  into  were  merited 
by  them,  but  that  he  bore  them  instead :  the  next  words  '  yet  we 
did  esteem  him,'  etc.,  intimate  that  they  thought  him  afflicted 
by  God  for  his  own  sins,  as  they  distinctly  say,  '  smitten  of  God 
and  afflicted.'  And  here  I  think  it  necessary  to  pause  for  a  few 
moments,  in  order  to  explain  why  God  caused  these  sicknesses 
to  attach  themselves  to  the  Messiah  for  the  sake  of  Israel.  We 
say  that  God  makes  known  to  the  people  of  their  own  time  fhe 
excellence  of  the  prophets  who  intercede  for  a  period  of  adver- 
sity in   two  ways  :    i.  whilst  Israel's  empire   lasted,    it   was 


24  YEPHETH    BEN    'aLI.  [liii.  4- 

shewn  in  prayer  and  intercession,  as  in  the  cases  of  Moses, 
Aaron,  Samuel,  David,  Elijah,  and  Elisha,  whose  prayers  for  the 
nation  Avere  accepted  by  God,  as  it  is  paid,  '  They  called  upon 
the  Lord  and  he  answered  them'  (Ps.  xcix.  6)  ;  2.  in  a  time 
of  captivity  and  extreme  wickedness,  though  their  intercession 
left  no  such  traces  as  these,  yet  the  burden  of  the  nation's  sins 
was  lightened  ;  such  was  the  case  with  Ezekicl  when  God  oliliged 
him  (iv.  4)  to  sleep  390  days  upon  his  left  side  and  40  upon  the 
right  one ;  he  carried  on  the  first  occasion  the  iniquity  of  Israel, 
and  on  the  second  the  weight  of  that  of  Judah  :  it  is  plain  from 
this  how  great  their  iniquity  must  have  been,  as  in  ftict  it  is 
said,  '  The  iniquity  of  the  house  of  Israel  and  Judah  is  exceeding 
great'  (Ezek.  ix.  9) ;  '  And  great  is  the  iniquity  of  the  daughter 
of  my  people'  (Lam.  iv.  6);  and  in  other  jjassages  similarly. 
The  nation  deserved  from  God  greater  punishment  than  that 
which  actually  came  upon  them,  but  not  being  strong  enough 
to  bear  it  (as  Amos  says,  vii.  2,  '  0  Lord,  forgive,  I  beseech 
thee;  how  can  Jacob  endure,  for  he  is  smulH')  the  prophet  had 
to  alleviate  it.  Inasmuch  now  as  at  the  end  of  the  captivity 
there  will  be  no  prophet  to  intercede  at  the  time  of  distress, 
the  time  of  the  Lord's  anger  and  of  his  fury,  God  appoints 
his  servant  to  carry  their  sins,  and  by  doing  so  lighten  their 
punishment  in  order  that  Israel  might  not  be  completely  extermi- 
nated. Thus  from  the  words  '  he  was  wounded  for  our  transgres- 
sions,' we  learn  two  things  :  i.  that  Israel  had  committed  many 
sins  and  transgressions,  for  which  they  deserved  the  indignation 
of  God  ;  2.  that  by  the  Messiah  bearing  them  they  would  be 
delivered  from  the  wrath  which  rested  upon  them,  and  be 
enabled  to  endure  it,  as  it  is  said,  '  And  by  associating  with 
him  we  are  healed.'  God  indeed  will  afflict  the  Messiah  with 
longer  and  severer  sicknesses  than  Ezekiel ;  but  tliis  is  owing  to 
the  period  in  which  he  lives  and  to  its  requirements,  and  in 
giving  him  the  rank  of  a  prophet,  he  will  bring  his  excellence 
to  light.  "We  have  no  doubt  then  that  Israel's  reward  is  with 
God  for  this  world  as  well  as  for  the  next  one,  as  we  shall 


-liii.  6.]  YEPUKTII    BEN    'ali.  25 

explain  on  ver.  12.  Nin  must  be  explained  hy  ivhich,  i.  e.  the 
sicknesses  which  he  bore  were  ours,  alluding  to  the  words 
'known  of  sickness'  in  the  last  verse:  the  word  vn,  which  is 
nearer,  is  here  mentioned  first,  being  followed  by  ni3"iX3JD  :  he 
then  says  with  reference  to  both  at  once,  'stricken'  and  'smitten,' 
i.  e.  stricken  with  sickness  and  smitten  with  pains.  The  expres- 
sion 'smitten  of  God'  signifies  that  these  sicknesses  attacked 
him  by  the  will  of  God  ;  they  did  not  arise  from  natural 
causes  (like  humours  of  the  l>ody),  or  belong  to  the  class  of 
diseases  occasioned  by  change  of  air:  and  the  word  'afflicted' 
corresponds  to  'despised'  in  ver.  3,  the  meaning  being  that  he 
was  afflicted  with  poverty. 

"  By  yji'D  are  denoted  great  sins,  such  as  sorceiy,  incest,  divi- 
nation, and  similar  abominations ;  by  py  [lighter]  sins,  like 
theft,  robbery,  etc.  "iDltD  includes  those  forms  of  punishment 
described  in  the  book  of  the  covenant  by  the  word  "\D\  as  '  I  will 
chastise  you'  (Lev.  xxvi.  28);  'I  will  chastise  thee  in  measure' 
(Jer.  XXX.  1 1).  I  have  translated  ):Wl^  '  health,'  as  Ps. 
xxxviii.  4,  'neither  is  there  any  health  in  my  bones;'  for 
although  the  word  literally  means  peace,  it  here  signifies  health. 
Israel  says :  This  chastisement  which  the  Lord  has  put  upon  us, 
and  from  which  he  will  heal  us,  is  owing  to  him  (Ivy).  in">13n3^ 
means  that  the  Messiah,  by  participating  with  them  in  these 
pains  and  sicknesses,  will  be  the  cause  of  their  being  healed. 

®This  verse  exhibits  Israel's  wickedness  in  not  awaking  to 
repentance  after  God  had  punished  them  with  his  plagues.  They 
are  compared  in  this  respect  to  sheep  without  a  shepherd  wan- 
dering from  the  way,  and  torn  by  wild  beasts,  going  astray  among 
the  mountains,  without  any  to  lead  them  back,  as  it  is  said, 
'My  sheep  wander  through  all  the  mountains'  (Ezek.  xxxiv.  6). 
In  like  manner  Israel  in  captivity  has  no  one  to  call  him, 
and  lead  him  back  to  the  right  way,  and  if  a  guide  (7''3C'D) 
rises  up  to  them,  desiring  to  bring  them  back  to  it,  they  hasten 
to  kill  him,  and  so  cause  their  captivity  to  be  prolonged.  By 
the  words  'we  have   tui-ned  every  one  to  his  own  way,'  they 


26  YEPHETH    BEN    'aLI.  [liii.  7- 

mean  that  each  is  occupied  with  the  necessities  of  life  and  with 
establishing  his  fortune.  And  whilst  God  looks  upon  their  work, 
and  they  do  not  think  of  their  sicknesses,  their  guilt  is  thrown 
upon  this  guide,  as  it  is  said,  *  And  the  Lord  laid  on  him  the 
iniquity  of  us  all.'  The  prophet  does  not  by  py  mean  iniquity, 
but  punishnient  for  iniquity,  as  in  the  passage, '  Be  sure  your  sin 
will  find  you  out'  (Num.  xxxii.  23).  Here  the  words  of  Israel 
end,  and  the  rest  of  the  section  contains,  as  the  context  shews, 
the  speech  of  God  himself. 

''■  *  In  these  two  verses  seven  things  are  enumerated  which 
God  brought  upon  the  Messiah  l)esides  the  pains  and  sicknesses 
mentioned  before  :  i.  ti'ja,  i.  e.  the  exaction  of  ti-ibute  and  fines 
which  were  laid  upon  Israel.  2.  n3V3,  i.  e.  degradation  and 
defamation — this  word  follosvs  accordingly  tJ'JJ.  3.  '  He  was 
led  like  a  sheep  to  the  slaughter,'  alluding  to  the  times  when 
his  life  was  endangered  ;  the  comparison  to  a  sheep  is  ti'ue  in 
three  respects  :  he  does  not  know  that  they  sought  to  slay 
him,  or  that  he  was  being  led  to  the  slaughter ;  he  has  nobody 
to  assist  him  by  taking  up  his  cause ;  and  he  has  no  power  to 
deliver  himself.  4.  '  And  like  a  lamb  which  before  her  shearers 
is  dumb,'  referring  to  the  times  both  of  taxation  and  of  slaughter, 
when  all  customary  usages  are  in  abeyance  ;  the  repetition  of 
the  phrase  'yet  he  opened  not  his  mouth'  refers  to  the  double 
period,  both  while  taxes  are  exacted  from  him  and  he  suffers 
defamation,  and  also  when  he  is  dragged  away  to  violence  and 
execution  without  any  possibility  of  conciliation.  5,  6.  '  From 
prison  and  from  judgment,'  implying  that  he  will  be  imprisoned, 
pondemned  by  the  judges,  and  loaded  with  infamy,  as  it  is  said, 
■  For  I  have  heai'd  the  slander  of  many'  (Ps.  xxxi.  14).  There 
are  thus  three  couplets,  each  consisting  of  two  parallel  expres- 
sions:  I.  n3y:i  ^i:;  2.  i?n"i3i  nti'3;  3.  02:^001  nvyo.    nph  means 

that  he  is  liberated  from  prison  by  the  mercy  of  God.  The 
words  'and  who  shall  declare  his  generation'  mean,  Who  can 
describe  the  multitude  of  misfortunes  which  will  befal  the 
Messiah  and  Israel  in  this  generation  1    7.  '  He  was  cut  off  out  of 


-liii.  lO.]  YEPHETH    BEN    '\\A.  27 

the  land  of  life,'  wliich  may  be  explained  to  signify  cither  that 
he  despaired  of  himself  on  account  of  the  number  of  these  mis- 
fortunes, or  that  he  was  cut  off  from  the  land  of  Israel,  which  is 
the  '  land  of  life'  for  this  nation.  And  the  concluding  words  of 
the  verse  are  God's  confirmation  of  what  Israel  had  said,  '  he 
was  wounded  for  our  transgressions :'  all  these  seven  troubles 
which  came  upon  him  were  '  because  of  the  transgression  of  my 
people, /or  whom  this  stroke  was,'  i.e.  who  deserved  it;  for  11D7 
refers  here,  as  is  clear  from  the  context,  to  Israel. 

*  'And  he  made  his  grave  with  the  wicked.'  This  means 
that  he  sometimes  despaired  so  nmch  of  liis  life  as  either  to  dig 
for  himself  a  grave  amongst  the  wicked  (i.  e.  the  wicked  Israel- 
ites), or  at  least  desire  to  be  buried  amongst  them.  The  general 
sense  is  that  he  resigned  himself  to  die  in  exile ;  for  those 
who  die  at  the  time  of  deliverance  will  not  be  buried  with  the 
wicked,  since  the  latter  are  to  be  slain  during  a  period  of 
misfortune,  as  it  is  written,  '  All  the  sinners  of  my  people  shall 
die  by  the  sword'  (Amos  ix.  lo).  By  the  '  rich'  are  meant  the 
powerful  men  among  the  Gentiles  who  are  rich  while  Israel  in 
exile  is  spoken  of  as  '  poor  and  needy ;'  at  that  time  some  of 
them  will  perish,  and  the  pi-ophet  here  declares  how  the  Messiah 
will  resign  himself  to  die,  and  be  buried  in  their  tomb.  The 
addition  'because  he  did  no  violence'  is  intended  to  mark  the 
difference  between  the  Messiah  and  those  wicked  Israelites  who 
had  perished  after  perpeti'ating  violence  and  deceit :  he  means 
to  say  that  though  he  made  his  grave  with  them  he  had  still 
never  participated  in  their  actions. 

"  It  was  said  above,  '  The  Lord  laid  upon  him  the  iniquity  of 
us  all,'  and  the  prophet  repeats  the  same  thought  here,  saying 
that  God  was  pleased  to  bruise  and  sicken  him,  though  not 
in  consequence  of  sin.  B}^  the  word  '  bruise '  he  points  back  to 
the  language  of  Israel  in  ver.  5,  '  he  was  bruised  for  our  iniqui- 
ties,' and  '  made  sick'  (vPin)  is  parallel  to  '  wounded'  (PPilD). 
The  prophet  next  says,  'When  his  soul  makes  a  trespass-offering,' 
indicating  thereby  that  his  soul  was  compelled  to  take  Israel's 


28  TfEPHETH    BEN   'aLI.  [liii.  1 1- 

guilt  upon  itself,  as  it  is  said  below,  '  And  he  bare  the  sin  of 
many'  (ver.  12).  Another  commentator  however  luiderstands 
the  phrase  as  meaning  that  '  his  soul  gave  itself  in  place  of  a 
trespass-offering,'  i.  e.  he  gave  himself  up  freely  to  be  slain. 
But  for  myself  I  prefer  the  former  explanation,  which  also  agrees 
better  with  the  sense  and  the  spirit  of  the  language.  Here 
the  narrative  of  the  state  of  the  Messiah  ends,  and  the  account  of 
the  rewards  given  to  him  begins.  In  the  first  place,  he  will  see 
seed^,  .  .  .  and  lojKjthen  days.  The  words  'and  the  pleasure 
of  the  Lord  will   ])rosper  in   his  hands'  embrace  three  facts  : 

1.  The  destruction  of  the  powerful,  as  it  is  said,  'He  will  do 
bis  pleasure  upon  Babylon  and  his  arm  upon  the  Chaldeans' 
(xlviii.  14).  2 .  Israel's  deliverance  from  exile,  and  the  glorifying 
of  the  law  and  God's  name,  as  we  have  explained  on  Is.  xlii.  2 1, 
'The  Lord  is  wqM  2^leased  to  magnify  the  Law  and  make  it  glo- 
rious.' 3.  The  restoration  of  Jerusalem  and  the  rebuilding  of 
the  temple,  as  will  be  explained ^  on  the  passage,  '  For  the  Lord 
Yi&th pleasure  in  thee'  (Is.  Ixii.  4).  All  these  three  facts  will  be 
accomplished  by  him,  in  accordance  with  the  promise,  '  shall 
prosper  in  his  hand.' 

"This  verse  is  the  complement  of  the  preceding  one:  there  it 
is  said,  '  Because  he  had  done  no  violence ; '  and  hei'e  he  adds, 
'  By  his  knowledge  shall  my  righteous  servant  make  many 
righteous,'  indicating  these  three  things  :  i.  That  he  will  ad- 
vance in  knowledge  till  he  arrives  at  truth  itself:  accordingly 
the  pi-ophet  says  knowledge,  not  understanding  or  wisdom, 
because    it   is   by  knowledge   that   absolute    truth    is   gi-asped. 

2.  That  he  is  a  righteous  servant,  i.  e.  knowledge  and  practice 
in  his  case  coincide,  instead  of  disagreeing  as  in  the  case  of  others 
(Ps.  1. 15).    3.  That  he  will  lead  others  to  repent,  and  make  them 

«  JVIarg.  note  in  MS. :  '  It  seems  to  me  that  a  word  should  here  follow 
whicli  has  been  omitted  by  the  scribe.' 

'  The  following  is  the  note  referred  to:  'na  'Scn  means  "I  have  pleasure 
in  her  to-day,  and  do  not  hate  her  as  before,  I  therefore  cause  my  glory  to  re- 
turn to  her  ;"  and  tiiis  is  the  meaning  of  "  the  Lord  hath  pleasure  in  thee."* 


-liii.  12.]  YEPHETH    BEN    'aI.I.  '20 

righteous.  When  these  three  high  prerogatives  are  united  in 
any  single  man,  his  position  is  already  sufficiently  exalted :  how 
much  more  so,  then,  when,  in  addition,  he  '  bears  the  inicjuities' 
of  others  !  The  word  many  refers  here  to  the  multitude  of 
men  who  will  be  present  before  him.  From  this  use  of  the 
word  you  may  learn  that  the  expression  *  holding  aloof  from 
men'  is  not  to  be  understood  in  an  absolute  sense:  the  prophet 
only  intends  to  convey  by  it  the  meaning  I  have  assigned  to  it 
above :  because  if  he  had  never  associated  with  any  one  at  all, 
how  could  he  have  been  said  to  '  make  many  righteous  1 ' 

^'^  The  prophet  had  said  in  the  jjreceding  verse,  '  From  the 
travail  of  his  soul  he  shall  see  and  be  satisfied :'  and  here  he 
proceeds  to  explain  its  meaning.  In  the  words  '  I  will  divide 
him  a  portion  with  the  great'  he  points  to  the  jiortion  of  land 
which  will  fall  to  the  Messiah  amongst  the  tribes,  as  it  is  said, 
'  And  for  the  prince  shall  there  be  a  portion  on  one  side  and  on 
the  other  of  the  holy  oblation'  (Ezek.  xlv.  7).  'And  with  the 
mighty  he  shall  divide  the  spoil'  refers  perhaps  to  the  spoil  of 
Gog,  which  he  will  take  in  company  with  the  Israelites,  who  are 
here  termed  the  '  mighty,'  because  at  that  time  they  will  be 
heroes  and  strong  men,  as  it  is  said,  '  And  they  shall  be  like 
strong  men,  trampling  down  their  enemies'  (Zech.  x.  5) ;  and 
'When  I  have  made  thee  as  the  sword  of  a  hero'  (ibid.  ix.  13). 
'Because  he  laid  bare  his  soul  to  die'  is  analogous  to  'he  was 
led  like  a  sheep  to  the  slaughter.'  In  saj  ing,  '  And  he  was 
numbered  with  the  transgressors'  he  means  that  at  the  time 
when  God  will  strike  the  transgressors  of  Israel  with  calamities, 
the  Messiah  will  be  numbered  amongst  them  :  this  answers  to 
the  words  in  ver.  7,  'he  was  oppressed  and  he  was  afflicted:' 
in  the  same  way,  '  he  bare  the  sin  of  many'  corresponds  to 
'  when  his  soul  makes  a  trespass-offering.'  And  the  last  words 
'make  intercession  for  the  transgressors'  mean  that  being  asso- 
ciated with  them  in  the  misery  arising  from  the  exaction  of 
tribute  and  other  similar  causes,  he  will  pray  for  their  deliver- 
ance as   well  as  his  own.     Observe,  that  in  this  section  the 


30  YEPHETH   BEN   'aLI.  [liii.  12. 

chronological  order  is  sometimes  reversed:  thus,  '  Behold- my 
servant  will  prosper'  refers  to  the  latter  part  of  his  career, 
whilst  all  that  follows,  liii.  2,  'And  he  came  up  before  him,' 
etc.,  down  to  'he  shall  see  seed'  (ver.  10),  describes  his  condition 
during  exile.  I  must  here  give  a  compendious  account  of  the 
whole  of  the  Messiah's  career ;  it  is  as  follows  : — His  first 
advent  will  be  from  the  north,  as  we  have  explained  upon 
xli.  25*^,  '  I  have  raised  one  up  from  the  north  and  he  came;' 
then  with  his  arrival  in  the  land  of  Israel  the  period  of  affliction 
and  violence  will  cease  from  Jacob,  and  at  the  same  time  all 
the  things  mentioned  in  the  present  section  will  happen  to  him. 
Every  good  quality  will  be  united  in  him,  but  in  spite  of  all 
this  the  people  Avill  not  recognise  in  him  the  will  of  God.  For 
his  sake,  however,  God  will  deliver  Israel  from  all  his  afflictions: 
and  when  the  season  of  redemption  comes,  our  lord  Elijali  Avill 
appear  to  the  people  and  anoint  him,  and  from  that  moment  he 
will  begin  to  be  prosperous,  as  it  is  said,  '  Behold  my  servant 
shall  prosper.'  His  forces  will  then  spread  in  every  direction 
and  be  victorious,  as  we  have  explained  on  lii.  1 5  ;  and  then  at 
last  Israel  will  dwell  in  safety.  When  news  of  this  reaches  Gog, 
they  will  rush  forth  and  'gather  themselves  together  against  the 
Lord  and  against  his  Anointed;'  but  when  he  prays  to  God  in 

K  The  note  is  as  follows  :  •  From  the  prophet's  saying,  firstly,  "  from  the 
north,"  and  then  "  from  the  sunrising,"  we  learn  two  things  :  i.  tliat  we  must 
not  imagine  the  person  spoken  of  in  ver.  2  as  raised  up  from  the  east  to  he 
different  from  the  one  mentioned  here  as  raised  up  from  the  north ;  2 .  that 
the  conqueror  who  will  arrive  from  the  east  is  identical  with  the  one  who  is 
to  arrive  from  the  north.  The  apparent  diversity  may  be  explained  in  two 
ways :  Either  his  origin  will  be  from  the  cast,  and  he  is  then  brought  up  in 
the  nortli,  whence  his  actual  arrival  will  take  place,  or  vice  versa ;  or  else  we 
must  suppose  that  the  north  and  east  are  mentioned  together  for  the  purpose 
of  shewing  that  the  point  from  which  he  will  appear  is  a  distant  corner 
formed  by  the  junction  of  these  two  quarters.  Another  commentator,  how- 
ever, gives  it  as  his  opinion  that  the  Messiah  will  come  from  the  east,  but 
that  the  jjrophet  speaks  of  the  north  because  this  is  a  name  of  Babylon,  as  it 
is  said  (Jer.  i.  14),  "  Out  of  the  north  the  evil  will  break  farfh.'" 


iiii.  12.]  YEPHETH    BEN    'aLI.  31 

the  midst  of  his  people,  God  will  come  to  him  with  deliverance, 
as  his  forefather  prophesied  :  '  The  Lord  answer  thee  in  the  day 
of  trouble,'  etc,  with  the  rest  of  the  pgalm  (Ps.  xx).  And  then  he 
will  be  '  high  and  exalted  and  lofty  exceedingly  ;'  and  afterwards 
the  promise  announced  by  God  will  be  fulfilled,  'Therefore  I 
will  divide  him  a  portion  with  the  great ;'  and  last  of  all  he 
shall  '  see  seed  and  lengthen  days.'  Such  is  the  narrative  of  his 
history  arranged  in  due  order.  And  notice  how  to  each  of  his 
sufferings  and  actions  a  reward  or  counterpart  is  assigned,  except 
to  the  one  '  my  servant  will  be  prosperous.'  Thus,  to  '  as  many 
have  been  desolated  at  thee,'  the  counterpart  announced  is, '  so  he 
Avill  sprinkle  many  nations  ;'  to  '  if  liis  soul  makes  a  trespass-offer- 
ing,' '  he  will  see  seed  and  lengthen  days  ;'  to  'by  his  knowledge 
my  righteous  servant  shall  make  many  righteous,'  '  I  will  divide 
him  a  poi-tion  with  the  many.'  Thus  every  detail  of  his  his- 
tory is  provided  with  its  counterpart :  but  to  exhibit  this  fully 
would  occupy  us  too  long.  Many  of  the  parallels  have  been 
already  mentioned  by  Benjamin  of  Nehawend  in  the  preface  to 
his  commentaiy  on  the  Canticle  ^ .  We  shall  only  add  that  the 
return  to  the  idea  of  his  death,  expressed  in  the  words  '  because 
he  laid  bare  his  soul  to  die,'  has  two  objects  :  i.  to  sum  up 
the  scope  and  object  of  the  whole  section  ;  2.  to  introduce  the 
final  addition  '  and  made  intercession  for  the  transgressors.' 
Space  does  not  permit  us  to  pursue  the  explanation  of  this  sec- 
tion in  greater  detail,  as  the  reader  will  already  have  been 
wearied  by  its  length ;  we  have  therefore  adhered  to  the  same 
compendious  form  adopted  in  our  commentary  elsewhere. 


^  On  Benjamin  of  Nehawend,  see  Pinsker,  Lickute  Kadmoniot,  i.  p.  44  ; 
Neubauer,  Ans  der  Petersb.  Bihl.  p.  6  ;  or  Griitz,  Geschickte,  vol.  v.  Onlj'  a 
few  fragments,  preserved  as  extracts,  have  come  down  to  us. 


VII.    MYSTERIES  OF  R.  SHIM'ON  BEN  VOIIAIa. 

And  Armilaus^  will  join  battle  with  Messiah,  the  son  of 
Ephraim'',  in  the  East  gate  . . . ;  and  ]\[essiah,  the  son  of  Ephraim, 
will  die  tliere,  and  Israel  will  mourn  for  him.  And  afterwards 
the  Holy  One  will  reveal  to  them  Messiah,  the  son  of  David, 
whom  Israel  will  desire  to  stone,  saying.  Thou  speak  est  falsely  ; 
already  is  the  Messiah  slain,  and  there  is  none  other  Messiah  to 
stand  up  (after  him) :  and  so  they  will  despii-e  him,  as  it  is 
written,  '  Despised  and  forlorn  of  men  ; '  but  he  will  turn  and 
hide  himself  from  them,  according  to  the  words,  '  Like  one 
hiding:  his  face  from  us.* 


»  Jellinek,  Beth  ham-Midrash  (1855),  part  iii.  ji.  So. 

*  Armilaus  (perhaps  Romulus,  or  the  barbarous  Cireek  (pTjfxtKaos)  repre- 
sents in  Aggadic  tradition  the  great  enemy  of  the  Messiah,  and  according  to 
a  late  Midrash  is  identical  with  Antichrist.  See  Hamburger,  Heal- Ency clop, 
fur  Bihel  und  Talmud  (1874),  ii.  p.  73. 

"  On  the  '  Double  fllessiah,'  see  Wiinsche,  pp.  109  ff.,  who  refers  to  the 
exhaustive  treatise  of  J.  M.  Glaesener,  Commentatio  de  gcmino  Judaeorum 
Messia  (Hildesiae  et  Lipsiae,  1737).  Messiah  ben  Ephraim  (or  ben  Yoseph) 
appears  in  the  later  Jewish  writings  as  the  forerunner  of  IVIessiah  ben  David, 
who  will  begin  tiie  work  of  Israel's  deliverance  and  restoration  but  before 
completing  it  will  be  slain  before  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  by  the  formidable 
hosts  (sometimes  spoken  of  as  Gog  and  iMagotr)  assembled  against  him  under 
Armilaus.  Thereupon,  the  Israelites  (as  the  text  says)  will  mourn  for  him 
(Zech.  xii.  10) ;  but  Messiah,  the  son  of  David,  will  continue  the  struggle, 
destroy  the  'wicked'  Armilaus  with  the  breath  of  his  nostrils  (Is.  xi.  4),  and 
lead  Israel  victoriously  into  Jerusalem.  The  idea  of  the  second  Messiah  was 
probably  suggested  by  the  language  of  Zeih.  xii.  10. 


XXVlll.  10. 


VIII.    B'RESHITH  RABBAH  OF  R.   MOSHEH 
HAD-DARSHAN. 

According  to  Rai/mundus  Martini. 

And  Jacob  went  forth  from  Beersheha.  This  is  that  which  Gen- 
is  written,  '  I  will  lift  mine  eyes  unto  the  hills  :  O  whence 
Cometh  my  help'  (Ps.  cxxi.  i)1  and,  '"Who  art  thou,  0  great 
mountain'  (Zech.  iv.  7)?  The  great  mountain  means  the 
Messiah,  and  why  does  he  speak  of  him  thus  1  Because  he  is 
greater  than  the  patriarchs,  as  it  is  said,  '  Behold  my  servant 
shall  prosper  a.' 

I  have  learnt  it  fi'om  the  words  of  R.  Mosheh  had-Darshan  :  Gen.xxxv.  ( 
The  redeemer  whom  I  shall  raise  up  from  among  you  will  have 
no  father,  as  it  is  written,  '  Behold  the  man  whose  name  is 
Zemah  [branch],  and  he  shall  branch  up  out  of  his  place' 
(Zech.  vi.  12);  and  so  Isaiah  says,  'And  he  came  up  like  a 
sucker,'  etc.  ^ 

Says  R.  B'rekhyah,  The  Holy  One  said  to  Israel,  You  have  Gen...  ^^ 
spoken  before  me,  saying,  We  are  orphans  and  have  no  father 
(Lam.  V.  3)  :  the  redeemer  Avhom  I  shall  raise  up  out  of  your 
midst  will  have  no  father  also,  as  it  is  said,  '  Behold  the  man 
whose  name  is  the  Branch,  and  he  shall  branch  up  out  of 
his  place'  (Zech.  vi.  12)  ;  and  similarly  by  Isaiah,  'And  he  came 
up  as  a  sucker  before  himf*.' 

In  the  beginning  God  created  the  heavens  and  tJie  earth.    This  Gen.  i.  i. 

»  Pugio  Fidei,  p.  601.  ^  Ibid.  p.  125.  =  Ibid.  p.  594. 


31'     b'rESIIITK  RABB.VII  or  1!.  JIOSIIEII  ]IAD-DA1!S11    N.    [lii,  liii. 

is  that  wIulIi  is  written,  'There  is  light  sown  for  the  righteous' 
(Ps.  xcvii.  ii).  R.  Abba  says,  'And  with  him  dwelleth  liglit' 
(Dan.  ii,  22)  :  this  is  the  light  of  the  King  Messiah  ;  and  so  it  is 
said,  '  For  with  thee  is  the  fountain  of  life,  in  thy  light  do  we 
see  light'  (Ps.  xxxvi.  10) — that  is,  the  light  of  the  ^Messiah. 
These  passages  teach  how  the  Holy  Oue  watched  the  Messiah 
and  his  generation,  and  kept  them  hidden  underneath  the  throne 
of  his  glory.  Satan  said,  Lord  of  the  world,  this  light  hidden 
beneath  the  throne  of  thy  glory — to  whom  does  it  belong  1  The 
Holy  One  answered,  To  the  Messiah  and  to  his  generation. 
Satan  said,  Lord  of  the  world,  suffer  me,  and  I  will  be  an 
adversary  unto  the  Messiah  and  his  generation.  The  Holy  One 
said,  Thou  canst  not  prevail  against  him,  Satan  answered, 
Lord  of  the  world,  suffer  me,  and  I  will  prevail.  The  Holy  One 
said,  If  this  is  thy  intention,  I  will  destroy  Satan  out  of  the 
world,  but  not  a  single  soul  belonging  to  that  generation  will  I 
destroy.  Forthwith  the  Holy  One  began  to  make  a  covenant  with 
the  Messiah :  O  ]\Iessiah,  my  righteousness,  said  he,  the  iniquities 
of  those  who  are  hidden  beside  thee  will  cause  thee  to  enter  into 
a  hard  yoke :  thine  eyes  shall  see  no  light,  and  thine  ears  shall 
hear  great  reproaches  from  the  nations  of  the  world ;  thy 
nostrils  shall  smell  ill  savours,  thy  mouth  taste  bitterness,  and 
thy  tongue  cleave  to  thy  gums  ;  thy  skin  shall  hang  upon 
thy  bones,  and  thy  body  grow  weak  in  grief  and  sighing.  Art 
thou  willing  to  accept  this '?  if  so,  it  shall  be  well ;  but  if  not, 
behold,  I  drive  them^  from  me  for  ever.  Said  the  Messiah,  Lord 
of  the  world,  I  accept  it  joyfully,  and  will  endure  these  chastise- 
ments, upon  condition  that  thou  givest  life  again  to  those 
who  die  in  my  days,  and  to  those  who  died  from  the  time 
of  the  first  man  until  now ;  and  that  thou  savest  in  my  days  not 
these  only,  but  those  also  whom  wolves  and  lions  have  devoured, 
and  who  have  been  swallowed  up  in  waters  and  rivers;  and 
nut  only  these,  but  such  also  as  were  born  out  of  due  time; 

^  I.  c.  the  souls  hiiltlcn  under  the  throne. 


lii,liii.J     BRESPIITII  KABBAH  OF  U.  MOSHEH  HAD-DARSIIAN.    35 

nor  again  these  only,  bnt  those  also  whom  thou  thoughtest 
to  create  but  who  were  not  created.  The  Holy  One  replied, 
I  will  do  so  :  and  forthwith  the  Messiah  accepted  the  chastise- 
ments of  love,  as  it  is  written,  '  He  was  oppressed,  and  he  was 
afflicted  e.' 

And  Jacob  brought  her  into  the  tent  of  Sarah  his  mother  Gen.xxiv 
(Gen.  xxiv.  67).  This  is  the  King  Messiah,  who  belonged  to 
the  generation  of  the  wicked,  but  rejected  them,  and  chose 
the  Holy  One  and  his  holy  name  to  serve  him  with  all  his 
heart,  and  applied  himself  to  seek  for  mercy  for  Israel,  and 
to  fast  and  humble  himself  on  their  behalf,  as  it  is  said,  '  He 
was  wounded  for  our  transgressions,'  etc.  And  when  Israel  is 
sinful,  the  Messiah  seeks  for  mei'cy  upon  them,  as  it  is  written, 
'  By  his  stripes  we  were  healed,'  and,  '  He  carried  the  sin  of 
many,  and  made  intercession  for  the  transgressors  V 


o  Pugio  Fidei,  p.  333  (comp.  Yalqut  on  Isaiah  Ix.  §  359). 
'  Ibid.  pp.  430,  671. 


D  2 


IX.     LEQAH    TOBH. 

'  Let  water  stream  from  his  buckets  » '  (Num.  xxiv.  7) — from 
the  poor  who  are  in  Israel :  hence  they  say,  '  Be  careful  with 
the  children  of  the  people  of  the  land  [i.  e.  the  poor],  because 
from  tlicm  doth  the  law  go  forth ^3.'  'And  let  his  seed 
be  on  many  waters  :'  the  kingdom  of  Israel  is  to  be  above 
all  the  kingdoms  of  the  earth,  '  May  his  king  be  high  above 
(or,  from)  Agag : '  from  the  days  of  Agag,  king  of  Amalek, 
the  kingdom  of  Israel  took  its  rise.  '  And  let  his  kingdom 
be  exalted,'  in  the  days  of  the  Messiah,  of  whom  it  is  said, 
'  Behold  my  servant  ?hall  prosper ;  he  will  be  high  and  exalted, 
and  lofty  exceedingly.' 


»  There  is  a  play  here  upon  the  word  v^TD,  which  is  interpreted  as  though 
it  were  pointed  I'^ip. 

•>  Tlialmud  of  Babylon,  Nedarim  81*. 


X.     R.  SH'LOMOH  YIZHAQI    (RASHI). 

Lll.^^ Behold  in  the  latter  days  my  servant  Jacob,  i.e.  the 
righteous  who  are  in  him,  tvill  prosper  :  ^*  as  mani/  peoples 
were  amazed  at  you  when  they  saw  your  depression,  and  said 
cue  to  another,  See  how  their  form  is  dark  and  worn  beyond 
that  of  other  men,  so  marred,  viz.  as  we  see  with  our  own  e3'es, 
^^so  now  will  his  hand  also  be  mighty,  and  Israel  shall  'cast 
down  the  horns  of  the  nations  which  have  scattered  them' 
(Zech.  ii.  4),  and  kings  shall  dose  their  mouths  in  amazement, 
for  glory  tvhich  had  not  been  told  tliem  concerning  any  man  will 
they  have  seen  in  him  and  observed. 

LIII.  ^  Had  we,  they  Avill  say  to  each  other,  had  we  heard  from 
others  what  now  we  are  beholding,  tvho  ivoidd  ever  have  believed 
it  ?  upon  tvhom  has  the  arm  of  the  Lord  ever  been  revealed 
as  now  in  splendour  and  greatness  1  ^Before  such  greatness 
came  upon  it,  this  people  was  in  deep  depression,  and  sprang 
up  out  of  itself  like  one  of  the  suckers  of  a  tree,  or  like  a  root 
out  of  the  dry  earth  :  from  the  first  it  had  no  form  and  no 
comeliness,  and  when  we  saw  it  without  any  comeliness  how 
could  we  desire  it!  (imDnj  as  an  exclamation.)  ^ Most  des- 
pised and  forlornest  of  men.  This  prophet  speaks  constantly 
of  the  whole  people  as  one  man,  as  xliv.  i,  2,  and  above  Hi.  13 
(where  ?''3C''  means  to  proi^pier,  as  i  Sam.  xviii.  14).  And  as  a 
result  of  their  shame  and  depression  they  were  as  men  hiding 
their  faces  from  us — like  a  person  stricken  [with  leprosy],  who 
is  aft-aid  to  look  up,  they  had  their  faces  bound  up  tliat  we 
might  not  see   them  :     *but — such   is  always  the   signification 


38  K.    Sh'lOMOH    YI/.HAQl    (llASIIl).  [liii.  5- 

of  px — biU  now  we  perceive  tliat  this  was  not  merely  a 
consequence  of  their  own  depression  :  Usrael  suffei'ed  in  order 
that  by  his  sufferings  atonement  might  be  made  for  all  other 
nations  :  the  sickness  which  ought  to  have  fallen  upon  us  was 
carried  by  him.7  We  iudeed  thought  that  he  had  been  hated 
of  God  :  but  it  was  not  so ;  he  was  wounded  for  our  trans- 
gressions, and  braised  for  our  iniquities;  °the  chastisement 
of  tlie  pecu;e  that  was  for  us  fell  iipon  him  ;  he  was  chastised 
in  order  that  the  whole  world  might  have  peace.  ^AU  we 
like  sJtee]?  have  gone  astray :  it  is  now  revealed  how  all  the 
Gentiles  have  erred.  Yet  the  Lord  let  himself  be  entreated  by 
him  (asprier,  in  French),  and  propitiated  for  the  iniquity  of  us 
all,  in  that  he  refrained  from  destroying  his  woi'ld.  ^  He  was 
oppressed  under  oppressors  and  persecutors,  a7id  anstvered,  viz. 
with  words  of  treachery  {surparler,  in  French) :  he  endured,  but 
was  silent,  like  a  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter  which  opens  not  its 
mouth,  and  like  a  lamb  which  before  her  shearers  is  dumb.  The 
words  Va  nna''  ab)  belong  to  tlie  '  sheep,'  *  The  prophet  here 
publishes  the  glad  tidings  of  Israel's  release,  representing  the 
Gentiles  as  announcing  it  in  the  latter  days  when  they  see  him 
taken  from  the  confinement  in  which  he  had  been  kej)t  by  their 
hands,  ?an\  from  i\\e  judgment  or  sentence  which  he  had  hitherto 
borne.  His  generation,  i.  e.  the  years  of  weariness  and  toil 
which  had  passed  over  him,  who  could  declare  ?  for  from  the 
first  he  had  been  cut  off  and  exiled  froin  the  land  of  the 
living,  i.  e.  the  land  of  Israel ;  because  for  the  transgression 
of  his  people  the  stroke  of  exile  had  fallen  upon  the  just  who 
were  among  them.  ^He  gave  himself  over  to  whatever  burial  the 
wicked  Gentiles  might  decree  :  for  the  Gentiles  used  to  condemn 
the  Israelites  to  be  murdei-ed  and  then  buried  like  asses  in  the 
bellies  of  dogs.  He  agreed,  then,  to  be  buried  according  to 
the  judgment  of  (ns)  the  wicked,  refusing  to  deny  the  living 
God ;  and  according  to  the  judgment  of  (riN)  the  ruler  he  gave 
himself  up  to  any  form  of  death  which  had  been  decreed  upon 
him,  because  he  would  not  deny  God  by  perpetrating  violence  and 


-liii.  12.]  1?.  sh'i.omoh  yiziiaqi  (rashi).  30 

doing  evil,  like  all  the  nations  amongst  whom  he  was  a  sojonrner  : 
neitJier  teas  there  any  deceit  in  his  mouth,  sc.  in  consenting  to 
the  worship  of  idols  as  though  they  had  been  God.  ^"  Jhtt  the 
Holy  One  was  pleased  to  bruise  him,  and  to  lead  him  back  into 
prosperity  :  so  for  this  cause  he  brought  him  into  sickness.  He 
then  says,  I  will  see  whether  his  soul  is  so  consecrated  and 
devoted  to  my  holiness  as  to  return  itself  as  a  trespass-offering 
for  all  his  rebelliousness  :  if  so,  I  will  then  pay  him  his  reward, 
and  he  shall  see  seed,  etc.  DC'N,  as  in  the  history  of  the  Philis- 
tines (i  Sam.  vi.  3),  is  the  fine  or  satisfaction  which  a  man  gives 
to  one  against  whom  he  has  committed  some  offence  (in  Fr. 
amende) .  "  Of  tlie  labour  of  his  own  soul  [i.  e,  of  his  own  work] 
he  ate  and  was  satisfied  :  he  did  not  plunder  or  rob  other  people  : 
by  his  knowledge  my  servant  ever  meted  out  faithful  judgment  to 
all  that  came  to  be  tried  before  him,  and,  as  happens  with  the 
righteous  always  (as  it  is  said  Num.  xviii.  i),  bare  their  iniquities. 
'■  Therefore,  i.  e.  because  he  did  this,  I  will  divide  him  an 
inheritance  and  a  lot  among  the  great,  sc.  with  the  early 
patriarchs,  because  lie  poured  out  (myn  as  Gen.  xxiv.  20)  his 
sold  to  die,  and  loas  numbered  loith  the  transgressors,  i.  e.  endured 
punishment  as  though  he  had  been  a  sinner  or  transgressor 
himself,  and  for  the  sake  of  others  bore  the  sin  of  many.  And 
in  virtue  of  his  sufferings — because  through  him  the  world 
received  prosperity — he  interceded  for  the  transgressors. 

According  to  Baymundus  Martini. 

'  Behold  my  servant  shall  prosper.'  Our  Rabbis  apply  this 
to  the  Messiah  :  Behold,  they  say,  the  Messiah  was  stricken, 
as  it  is  written,  '  He  can'ied  our  sicknesses  and  bare  our  pains,' 
etc.  ;  and  he  stood  at  the  gate  of  Rome  amongst  those  afflicted 
with  sicknesses,  as  is  said  in  the  treati.'^e  Sanhedrin,  in  the 
section  Heleq. — '  He  will  be  high,  and  lifted  up,  and  lofty 
exceedingly.'  I  have  heard  thnt  there  is  a  !Midiash  Aggadah, 
which   expounds   this   verse    as    follows  :    The    Holy   One  will 


40  R.    SH'lOMOH    YIZHAQl    (RASHi).  [Hi.  13. 

make  the  Messiah  higher*  than  Abraham,  of  whom  it  is  written, 
'I  raise  hi(jh  my  hand  to  the  Lord'  (Gen.  xiv.  22);  lifted  up 
above  Moses,  of  wliom  it  is  said,  '  As  a  nurse  Vifts  vjj  and  carries 
the  young  one'  (Num.  xi.  12);  and  lofty  exceedingly  above 
tlie  angels,  of  whom  it  is  said,  '  Their  wheels  were  lo/ti/ ' 
(Ezek.  i.  18). 

«  niT  being  used  transitively. 


XI.     R.  JOSEPH   QARA. 

LII.  "  My  serviint  Israel  will  be  high  and  lifted  up  :  according 
to  the  Midrash  of  our  Rabbis,  he  will  be  higher  than  Abraham, 
of  whom  it  is  written,  '  I  raise  high  my  hand  to  the  Lord'  (Gen. 
xiv.  22) ;  lifted  up  above  Closes,  of  Avhom  it  is  said,  'As  a  nurse  lifts 
up  and  carries  the  young  one'  (Num.  xi.  1 2) ;  and  lofty  exceedingly 
above  the  angels,  of  whom  it  is  said,  '  Their  wheels  were  lofty ' 
(Ezek.  i.  18),  ^*  So  marred  was  the  countenance  of  this  people  : 
how  is  it  possible  that  it  should  be*  so  marred  in  the  manner 
that  we  actually  see  1  ^'^  So,  viz.  according  to  the  measure  of 
their  amazement,  Israel  will  expel  and  drive  away  many  nations. 
At  him  kings  will  shut  their  mouth,  i.  e.  will  repress  their  words 
(Job  iv.  2) ;  cf.  the  phrase  (Job  xxix.  9)  '  to  lay  the  hand  upon 
the  mouth.'  For  what  had  not  been  told  them  have  they  seen. 
Will  they  a  not  say  that  the  consolations  which  the  nations 
then  see  fulfilled  in  Israel  had  never  been  told  them :  and 
that  they  are  discerning  in  them  good  things  which  the  ear 
bath  never  heard? 

LIII.  ^  In  time  past,  when  Israel  Avere  amongst  us  in  depres- 
sion, who  ever  believed  that  they  would  come  to  such  greatness  1 
such  will  be  the  language  of  the  nations  as  they  see  Israel  in 
prosperity.  And  who  ever  believed  that  the  arm  of  the  Lord 
would  be  revealed  to  a  people  despised  as  they  were  1  ^  This 
people  that  was  once  desi^ised  and  'spoiled'  (Is.  xlii.  22)  has 
now  sprung  up  like  a  young  twig  whose  suckers  arc  planted 
to-day,  and  to-morrow  it  springs  up  and  becomes  a  great  tree,  or 
like  a  root  which  is  put  into  the  earth,  and^  afterwards  it  lifts 

»  Reading  noM',  which  seems  required  by  the  sense. 


42  R.  YOSEPII    QARA.  [liii.  ;-6. 

up  its  branches  anil  produces  fruit  and  becomes  a  noble  cedar  : 
in  the  same  way  Israel  sj)rang  up  out  of  the  dry  earth  of 
his  captivity.  And  we  gaze  upon  him;  but  the  countenance 
which  we  see  now  is  not  like  the  countenance  which  he  had 
formerly.  ^lleicas  most  despised  and  forhrnext  of  men  ;  for 
you  can  find  no  people  in  the  world  touched  l)y  pains  and  sick- 
ness such  as  Israel's.  Thus  in  time  past,  vMle  their  Creator 
hid  his  face  from  them,  Iw,  was  despised  and  we  esteemed,  him 
not;  *but  now  we  see  that  they  had  served  the  faithful  God,  and 
kept  the  law  of  Moses,  and  observed  justice  and  right,  and  that 
they  have  been  carrying  sicknesses  and  pains  which  for  our 
iniquities  should  have  been  borne  by  us ;  i/et  toe,  when  we  saw 
him  smitten,  afflicted,  and  stricken,  kept  saying  that  this  smiting 
and  this  stroke  had  come  upon  them  from  God,  because  they 
had  not  adhered  to  his  ordinances  and  statutes.  ^  It  was  not, 
however,  as  we  thought :  lie  was  ivounded  among  the  nations 
for  our  transgressions  :  for  it  cannot  be  supposed  that  Israel's 
own  iniquities  occasioned  their  devastation,  when  we  now  see 
them  high  and  exalted  above  every  man ;  since  they  kept  the 
law  of  truth,  what  could  have  caused  them  to  be  wounded 
and  bi'uised  for  our  iniquities  ?  Tlie  chastisement  upon  him 
was  our  peace;  i.  e.  by  the  humiliation  involved  in  Israel's 
bearing  the  yoke  of  foreign  kingdoms,  peace  was  secured  for 
us ;  because  the  Holy  One  created  for  liimself  one  just  nation 
in  the  world,  which  carried  on  itself  all  iniquities  in  order  that 
the  whole  world  might  be  preserved  ;  and  by  his  strijoes  there 
was  healing  for  us.  ^All  loe  like  sheep  have  gone  astray  :  these 
are  the  words  of  the  nations,  as  they  confess,  saying.  Now  we  see 
that  we  have  been  keeping  a  statute  of  vanity,  and  have  adhered 
to  a  law  of  falsehood  .  .  .  l> 


''  Erased  in  the  MSH. 


XII.     R.   ABRAHAM    IBN   'EZRA. 

This  Parashali  is  an  extremely  difficult  one.  Our  opponents 
say  that  it  refers  to  their  God,  supposing  the  'servant'  to  signify 
his  body  :  this,  however,  is  not  possible,  for  tlie  body  cannot 
'understand'  even  during  a  man's  lifetime.  Moreover,  if  their 
view  be  correct,  what  will  be  the  meaning  of  'seeing  seed?' 
for  he  (their  God)  saw  no  son  ;  or  of  '  prolonging  days,'  which 
is  equally  untrue  of  him ;  or  of  '  dividing  spoil  with  the 
strong  t'  The  pi'oof  of  its  proper  meaning  lies  in  the  passages 
immediately  before  (lii.  12,  where  'j'ou'  signifies  Israel),  and 
immediately  afterwards  (liv.  i,  where  'the  barren  one'  desig- 
nates the  congi'egation  of  Israel) ;  similarly  my  servant  means 
each  individual  belonging  to  Israel,  and  consequently  God's 
servant,  who  is  in  exile.  But  many  have  explained  it  of  the 
Messiah,  because  our  Eabbis  have  said  ^  that  in  the  day  when 
the  Sanctuary  was  laid  waste,  the  Messiah  was  born,  and  that  he 
was  bound  in  fetters  (Jer.  xl.  i).  Several  of  the  verses,  however, 
have  then  no  meaning,  for  instance,  '  despised  and  forlorn  of 
men,'  '  taken  from  prison  and  judgment,'  '  made  his  grave  with 
the  wicked,'  'will  see  seed,  and  prolong  days.'  R.  Sa'adyah 
interprets  the  whole  Parashah  of  Jeremiah ;  and  this  inter- 
pretation is  attractive.  Jeremiah  'scattered^  many  nations' 
by  the  word  of  prophecy  which  was  in  his  mouth  (i.  9  f., 
cf.  v.  14);  he  'came  up  before  him  like  a  sucker,'  for  when 
he  began  to  prophesy  he  was  a  youth  (i.  6) ;  '  the  Loi'd  laid 
upon  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all,'  and  he  'carried  the  sin  of 
many,'  when  he  stood  before  God  to  speak  good  for  them,  and 
to  turn  away  the  wrath  from  them  (xviii.  20) ;  he  was  '  led  like 
a  sheep  to  the  slaughter,'  as  he  says  himself  (xi.  19);  and  he 
'  divided  spoil  with  the  mighty,'  when  the  captain  of  the  guard 

"  Midrash  £klui,  i.  16.  •>  So  Sa'adyah  renders  nr :  sec  p.  17. 


4i  R.    AHRAIIAM    IBN    'ly.RA.  [lii.  13- 

gave  liim  '  vii'tuals  and  a  portion  of  meat'  (xl.  5).  But  in 
my  judgment  tlie  Parasliuh  is  more  intimately  connected  with 
the  context,  for  what  object  can  there  be  in  mentioning  Jere- 
miah when  consolations  addressed  to  Israel  form  the  subject  of 
tlie  prophet's  discourse  both  before  and  after  1  In  fact,  he  is 
simply  speaking  of  each  one  of  God's  servants  who  is  in  exile  ; 
or,  which  is  more  probable,  'my  servant'  may  mean  Israel  as  a 
whole,  as  in  xli.  8. 

LII.  ^^  Mi/  servant  shall  understand  that  he  will  yet  be  high 
again.  Nl^'3  is  Nif'al.  "itDDtJ'  as  Lev.  xxvi.  32  :  every  one  who 
sees  the  servant  of  God  will  be  astonis/ied.  The  word  many 
alludes  to  the  nations;  and  after  p  the  copula  must  be  sup- 
plied— '  So  marred  was  .  .  .'  DDC'D  is  then  an  adjective  ;  and  in 
form  ilNri  c  resembles  Um.  The  phenomenon  alluded  to  is 
well  known  :  how  many  nations  are  there  in  the  world  who 
think  that  the  featui'es  of  the  Jew  are  disfigured  and  unlike  those 
of  other  men,  and  ask  whether  a  Jew  has  a  mouth  or  an  eye ! 
This  is  done,  for  example,  in  the  counti'ies  of  Ishma'el  and  'Edom<i, 
^*  nf  p  is  the  continuation  of  Nl**J1  DH''  :  as  it  was  ti'ue  that  his 
countenance  was  marred  in  the  eyes  of  all  who  saw  him,  so  will 
the  time  come  for  him  to  take  vengeance  of  them  and  sprinkle 
them,  i.  e.  shed  their  blood.  And  then  kings  will  shut  their 
mouths  Ivy,  i.  e.  because  of  him  ;  for  what  had  not  been  told 
them,  they  will  then  have  seen,  because  it  never  entered  into  the 
heart  of  the  nations  to  suppose  that  thei'e  could  ever  be 
deliverance  for  Israel. 

LIII.  ^  Then  they  will  say,  Who  ever  believed  that  things 
would  happen  in  accordance  with  this  report  that  we  hear  ? 
upon  whom  loas  the  arm  of  the  Lord  ever  revealed  as  it  has  been 
revealed  upon  these  1  ^  Each  of  God's  servants  belonging  to 
Israel  (or  the  whole  of  Israel)  was  springing  up  before  him  like 

•=  So  our  editions :  but  Ibn  'Ezra,  as  Friedliinder  suggests,  may  probably 
have  read  i'^J^O,  which  in  fact  occurs  in  a  MS.  of  the  Bodleian  Library, 
assigned  (see  Neuhauer,  Catal.  No.  6(j)  to  the  13th  century. 

<•  I.e.  among  Mohammedans  ajid  Christians. 


-liii.  :.]  R.  ABUAiiAM  IBN  'ezra.  45 

a  si(cker  (Hos.  xiv.  7),  or  like  a  root  out  of  the  dry  earth  which 
produces  no  fruit,  lie  had  no  form  :  to  be  explained  accordinjT 
to  lii.  14.  In  ns'-iD  N^  inxiJI  the  force  of  v6  extends  over 
tlie  second  word  as  well  as  that  which  immediately  belongs 
to  it — '  he  had  no  form,  and  we  did  not  desire  him  :'  so  Prov. 
xxi.  14  nSD'"  must  be  understood  in  the  second  half  of  the  verse. 
^  He  tvas  despised  and  ceasing  from  men,  i.  e.  ceased  to  be 
reckoned  among  men :  a  man  of  j)ains,  so.  the  servant  of  God ;  or 
if  ^"I3y  be  understood  of  the  nation,  then  C'"'t<  will  be  used  to 
signify  '  a  being'  in  general,  as  Ex.  xv.  3  •*.  The  expressions  pains 
and  sickness  allude  to  the  distress  occasioned  by  exile.  And  it 
luas  as  thouyh  one  hid  his  face  from  him :  even  to  this  day  there 
are  non-Israelites  who  when  they  see  a  Jew,  hide  their  faces 
from  him ;  the  phrase  meaning  that  they  will  not  look  at  him 
for  the  purpose  of  saving  him.  *  The  substance  of  the  verse  is 
as  follows  : — It  was  we  who  caused  his  sickness ;  yet  he  carried 
it,  and  bore  all  the  pains  wherewith  we  pained  him.  We,  how- 
ever, thought  that  he  had  been  stricken  with  the  stroke  or 
plague  of  lejorosy  (Lev.  xiii.  5).  n31?0  is  in  st.  constr. :  it  was  God 
who  smote  him  and  afflicted  him  because  the  sicknesses  ought 
to  have  come  upon  us,  whose  laws  were  altogether  vanity, 
but  they  came  upon  Israel  instead,  whose  law  was  a  law  of  faith- 
fulness. This  is  proved  by  the  words,  '  All  we  like  sheep  had 
gone  astray.'  ^  7?in?D  is  ptcp.  of  ?Pin.  The  chastisement  of  our 
2Jeace  is  that  which  per^oetuates  our  peace;  and  this  rested  vpon 
him;  as  is  clear  from  the  words  *  and  by  his  stripes  we  are  healed.' 
By  our  transgressions  are  meant  the  sufferings  inflicted  on  Israel 
by  the  nations,  for  which,  as  Joel  says  (iv.  2 1 ),  God  will  visit 
them  ;  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  chastisement  of  our  ])ea.ce,  it 
is  well  known  that  all  the  time  that  Israel  is  in  the  humiliation 
of  exile  the  nations  will  have  peace,  for  do  you  not  find 
it  written  of  the  time  of  deliverance  that  it  will  be  a  '  time 
of  distress'  (Dan.  xii.  i)  ;    and  again,  when  those  who  had  been 

®  On  this  passage,  compare  Friedlander's  note. 


46  R.  ABRAHAM    I15N    'eZRA.  [liii.  6- 

sent  brought  back  word  that  the  whole  earth  was  '  sitting 
still  and  at  rest,'  that  the  angel  answered  and  said,  '  Until  when 
wilt  thou  not  have  niei-cy  on  Jerusalem'  (Zech.  i.  ii  f.)  1  which 
implies  that  Jerusalem  will  not  receive  mercy  during  the  whole 
time  that  the  nations  are  at  rest.  ^AU  ws,  etc.  :  at  last,  then, 
they  confess  the  truth,  exactly  as  in  Jer.  xvi.  19,  'nothing 
but  lies  have  our  fathers  inherited.'  The  words  bear  reference 
to  the  false  supposition  of  ver.  4.  y^JSn  is  from  yjS,  Gen.  xxviii. 
1 1  ;  and  py  is  here  used  in  the  sense  of  penalty  for  sin,  as 
I  Sam,  xxviii.  10,  Gen.  xv.  16,  Lam.  iv.  6.  Others  render  yiSH 
made  to  intercede,  cf.  Jer.  vii.  16,  understanding  py  in  its 
usual  acceptation  of  iniquity ;  the  sense  of  the  whole  will  then 
be  that  Israel  interceded  with  God,  in  order  that  there  might 
be  peace  in  the  world,  cf.  Jer.  xxix.  7  ;  but  py  in  this  case 
agrees  but  harshly  with  U  yJDn.  "CJ3  Nifal.  He  opened  not 
his  mouth :  there  is  no  need  to  interpret  these  words,  for  every 
Jew  in  exile  exemplifies  their  truth  :  in  the  hour  of  his  affliction 
he  never  opens  his  mouth  to  speak,  even  though  he  alone  is  just 
amongst  them  all :  for  he  has  no  care  in  this  world  except  for 
the  service  of  God ;  he  knows  no  prince  or  dignitary  Avho  will 
stand  before  him  in  the  breach  when  men  rise  up  against  him  (Ps. 
cvi.  23,  cxxiv.  2)  :  he  opens  not  his  mouth  at  any  time.  ^ From 
confinement,  etc.  :  God,  however,  will  redeem  Israel,  i.  e.  the 
righteous  of  them.  He  was  taken :  God  took  him  out  of 
prison,  where  he  was  confined  under  a  condemnation  of  ven- 
geauce.  nniC'''  like  n"'tJ'  Job  xii.  8  :  '  who  announced  to  the 
men  of  his  generation  that  it  would  be  so  ? '  /or  he  teas  already 
cut  off  from  tlie  land  of  life,  '•roy  yC'QD  :  these  are  the  words  of 
each  separate  nation,  '  the  stroke  that  has  fallen  upon  Israel 
is  owing  to  our  transgressions'  (like  li'^yt^DD  ??ino  ver.  5);  or, 
as  is  more  correct,  '  for  the  transgression  of  my  people  the 
stroke  will  come  upon  them  *,' — 1?3?  being  equivalent  to  On?  for 

'  I.  e.  upon  the  various  nations.    Ibn  'Ezra  considers  tliat,  liad  Israel  alone 
been  intended,  the  singular  npon  him  would  have  been  employed. 


-liii.   11.]  K.  ABlt.VHAM    IBN    'e/.RA.  47 

or  upon  them.  'Some  explain  Vmj^3  '  in  liis  deaths'  of  those  who 
died  in  exile  ;  but  others  derive  it  from  DVOZl  Deut.  xxxiii.  29, 
i.  e.  the  Luildlug  erected  over  a  grave  :  vniDl  will  then  be 
parallel  to  linp.  Ttry  HNI  is  parallel  to  CyB'T  TIN,  and  alludes 
to  the  nations  who,  as  compared  with  Israel,  are  wealthy.  In 
my  opinion  the  real  meaning  of  the  vei'se  <is  this :  it  is 
intended  to  describe  the  distress  of  the  Israelites  in  exile,  which 
was  so  intense  that,  like  Samson  (Judg.  xvi.  30),  they  desired 
to  die  with  the  nations  amongst  Avhom  they  dwelt — the  sense  of 
and  he  made  being  a7id  he  made  in  his  own  mind,  i.  e.  purjwsed 
to  make,  cf.  Josh.  xxiv.  9.  And  that  this  desire  arose  indeed 
from  their  distress  is  shewn  by  what  follows,  because  he  did  no 
violence,  etc.;  for  the  Gentiles  ill-treated  Isiael  gratuitously, 
and  not  on  accovmt  of  any  evil  deed  or  word  of  which  they 
had  been  guilty — a  view  which  will  also  accord  equally  with 
either  signification  of  jn^l ".  If  it  be  objected  that  in  T\'\'!22  the 
games  is  unalterable  (as  in  Vj'^DIca  Deut.  xxxiii.  29),  and  that 
thei-efore  yT)V22  cannot  be  derived  from  it,  it  may  be  replied  that 
this  word  can  assume  two  forms  in  5^.  constr.  like  D''"iD,  from 
which  we  find  both  'D^p  (Gen.  xl.  7)  and  also  'Ono  (Esth. 
ii.  21  al.).  ^°To  bruise  him,  i.e.  to  chasten  him  in  captivity: 
1S'31  is  Pi'el,  like  "iin  (Gen.  xxxvii.  4) ;  and  'hnr\  is  from  rhn,  but 
formed  after  the  manner  of  verbs  N"b,  cf.  n''N'"l7nn  Deut.  xxix.  21. 
If  his  soul,  he  continues,  puts  its  trespass  befoi-e  God,  i.  e.  if  he 
confesses  his  sin — or,  in  other  words,  if  his  soul  puts  before  him 
the  fear  of  the  Lord — he  will  see  sons  and  prolong  his  days, 
so  that  he  and  they  together  will  see  the  salvation  of  God,  The 
prophet  speaks  here  of  the  generation  which  will  return  to  the  law 
of  God  when  the  end,  the  advent  of  the  Messiah,  has  taken  place. 
And  the  Lord's  pleasure  shall  prosper  in  his  hand,  alluding  to 
the  Law,  Avhen  the  nations  are  converted  to  the  true  religion. 
"  For  the  travail  of  his  sold,  i.  e.  as  a  reward  for  what  he 
has  endured,  he  loill  see — either,  that  is,  his  desire  or  prosperity 


8  Namely,  either  literally  and  he  made  or  and  hepurjtosed  to  make. 


48  E.  ABH.VHAM    TRN    'eZRA,  [liii.  12. 

generally — until  he  is  safisjied,  because  by  his  knowJedfje  he  will 
jusdftj  many,  viz.  the  nations  whom  Israel  will  teach  to  fulfil 
the  law.     And  the  meaning  of  his  hearing  their  iniquities  is  that 
Israel,  acting  in  a  difl'erent  manner  from  that  in  which  the 
Gentiles  had  acted  towards  them,  will  share  in  the  pain  suffered 
by  the  latter  for  their  sins.     Oi* — and  this  is,  I  think,  preferable, 
as   the  next  verse  seems  to  shew — the  meaning  may  be  that 
Israel  will  pray  to  God  for  the  Gentiles  :  in  this  case,  cf.  Zech. 
xiv.  17.     ^^  All  the  interpretci's  say  that  this  verse  alludes  meta- 
phorically to   those   who   perished    in  defence  of  the  doctrine 
of  the  Divine  Unity,  C^i  (as  Esth.  i.  8),  meaning  the  yreat  ones 
(i.  e.  the  pro])hets),  and   D"'C1Vj;    denoting  the   patriarchs ;    the 
sense  accordingly  is  that  those  who  died  in  that  cause  will  have 
a  portion  with  the  prophets.     Although  true  in  itself,  however, 
such  a  sense  does  not  agree  with  the  rest  of  the  Parashah,  and 
in  my  opinion  the  meaning  is  rather  this  :   '  I  will  give  Israel  a 
portion  of  spoil   and  plunder    from   many  nations   (JIN  before 
CCIVy   signifying  from,  as   Ex.  ix.   29),  as  a  rcAvard  for  his 
having  poured  out  his   soul  to  die.'     Some,  however,  explain 
iTiyn  in  the  sense  of  uncover,  expose  openly.     I  prefer  the  sense 
here  given  (cf.  Gen,  xxiv.  20,  although  there  the  conjugation  is 
different),  which  is  also  confirmed  by  Ps.  cxli.  8,  where  n'ly  evi- 
dently means   to  -pour  out.     Thus  Israel  was  numbered   with 
those  who  had  transgressed  against  God,  and  carried  tlie  sin  of 
many,  because  through  his  i)ains  the  Gentiles  had  peace ;  and 
the  sin  which  they  ought  to  have  carried  was  borne  by  him. 
He   also   interceded  for  tlie   transgressors,  i.  e.    the    Gentiles ; 
as  it  is  said,  Jer.  xxix.  7,  'And  seek  ye  the  peace  of  the  city 
whither  I  have  caused  you  to  be  carried  away  captives.'     I  have 
now  explained  for  you  the  whole  Parashah  :  in  my  opinion  the 
expression  my  servant  (lii.  13,  liii.  11)  denotes  the  same  person 
Avho  is  the  subject  of  xlii.  i,  xlix.  3 ;  cf.  1.  6  ;  and  the  mystery  is 
to  be  understood  as  I  hinted  in  the  middle  of  the  book  (ch.  xl). 
Thus  all  these  Parashas  are  connected  intimately  together. 


XIII.     R.   DAVID    QAMHI. 

'  This  Parashah  refers  to  the  captivity  of  Israel,  who  are  here 
called  '  my  servant,'  as  in  xli.  8  ;  the  prophet  says,  '  Behold  the 
time  Avill  come  when  my  servant  will  prosper,  and  be  high,  and 
exalted  exceedingly.'  p'^^C'  means  to  prosper,  as  i  Sam.  xviii.  14, 
and  as  the  word  is  interpreted  by  Yonathan^.  And  because 
the  exaltation  of  Israel  is  to  be  very  great,  the  prophet  uses 
a  multiplicity  of  terms  to  express  the  idea  :  n331  Ntf  J1  D1"1\ 

I  will  now  proceed  to  expound  the  Parashah  as  it  is  expounded 
by  my  father  of  blessed  memory  in  the  Sepher  hag-Galuy  and  the 
Sepher  hab-B'rith,  composed  by  him  in  answer  to  the  heretics. 

^*DDt^  means  to  be  astonished,  as  Ezek.  iii.  15  :  'as  they  were 
astonished  at  the  extent  of  thy  depression ; '  and  it  was  natural 
that  they  should  be  thus  astonished,  for  they  saw  that  his  coun- 
tenance and  form  were  marred  beyond  any  man's.  The  prophet 
speaks  at  one  moment  in  the  second  person,  at  another  in  the 
third,  saying  'at  tliee,'  but  '  his  countenance,'  'his  form ;'  this  is 
the  custom  of  Scripture  in  countless  passages,  as  we  have  else- 
where shewn.  The  learned  Rabbi  Abraham  Ibn  'Ezra  explains 
the  words  by  pointing  out  how  many  nations  there  are  in 
the  world  who  believe  that  the  features  of  the  Jew  are  dis- 
figured and  unlike  those  of  other  men,  and  remarking  that 
some  even  go  so  far  as  to  ask, — in  the  country  of  Ishmael  or 
Edom,  for  example, — whether  a  Jew  has  a  mouth  or  an  eye. 
^^nnti'lD  (with  Hireq  under  the  d)  is  an  adjective  like  riviao 
(Josh.  xvi.  9),  also  with  Hireq.     And  nxn  has  Holem,  because 

■^  In  the  Thargum  :  see  p.  5. 
E 


50  R.  DAVID    QAMIII.  [Hii.  i- 

of  the  N.  nr  has  the  sense  of  spealcinr/,  like  fj^Ori,  wliich  means 
both  to  sprinkle  or  drop  (Judg.  v.  4)  and  also  to  spexiJc  (Mic. 
ii.  6).  The  verb  has  a  causative  force,  fera  j^arler  in  rrench. 
The  prophet  means  to  say,  As  they  were  astonished  at  his 
depression,  so  will  they  now  be  astonished  to  see  his  greatness, 
and  will  be  talking  of  it  continually.  At  him  kings  tvill  shut 
their  mouth — even  to  kings,  as  it  is  said  Ixii.  2,  will  his  glory 
appear  in  its  greatness.  IVQp^  is  either  to  open,  as  Cant.  ii.  8, 
where  )*2p  signifies  the  opening  out  of  the  steps  in  leaping, 
or  to  shut,  as  Deut.  xv.  7.  Either  meaning  is  possible  here  :  the 
kings  may  open  their  mouth  to  tell  of  his  greatness,  or  close 
their  mouth  by  placing  their  hand  upon  it  in  amazement.  For 
they  will  see  then  more  of  his  greatness  than  what  had  been 
told  tliem,  and  perceive  more  of  it  than  they  had  lieard  of. 

LIII.  ^  Then  the  Gentiles  will  say.  Who  was  there  that 
believed  the  report  which  we  heard  concerning  him  from  the 
prophets'  lips,  or  from  those  who  spoke  in  their  name  ?  We 
never  believed  what  we  are  now  seeing  with  our  own  eyes. 
And  upon  whom  was  the  arm  of  the  Lord  ever  revealed  as  it 
is  now  revealed  upon  him  1  Or  '•D  7]}  may  be  spoken  con- 
temptuously, meaning,  Who  was  he  that  the  arm  of  the  Lord 
should  be  revealed  upon  him  1  ^  pJV3  as  Hos.  xiv.  7  :  Israel 
was  like  a  sucker  without  beauty  springing  up  out  of  a  root 
in  the  dry  soil.  In  my  opinion,  however,  the  allusion  is  rather 
to  Israel's  coming  up  out  of  exile,  which  was  as  surprising  and 
wondrous  as  for  a  sucker  to  spring  up  out  of  the  dry  ground,  or 
for  a  tree  or  herbage  to  flourish  there.  Sucker  and  root  are 
pai-allel  terms  for  the  expi-ession  of  the  same  idea ;  and  the 
meaning  of  VJS^  is  that  Israel  was  continually  before  God,  and 
so  nearer  to  him  than  any  other  nation.  Yet  while  in  captivity 
lie  had  no  form  and  no  comeliness — 'form'  meaning  of  course  a 
beautiful  form  :  and  we  looked  at  him,  but  he  had  no  beauty 
in  his  looks ;  his  countenance  was  deformed  and  disfigured, 
unlike  other  men's.  imJSnJI ;  the  preceding  ^  stands  in  place 
of  two :    '  we   did    not  desire    him,'   but    rather  loathed    him. 


-liii.  4.]  R.  DAVID    QAMHI.  51 

'  Not  only  did  we  not  desire  him,  he  was  even  despised  in  our 
eyes.  Ct^''^  ^in ;  i.  e.  the  most  insignificant  of  men,  or, 
perhaps,  forlorn  of  men,  because  they  woukl  not  associate 
with  him.  The  ^jaiMs  and  sickness  spoken  of  are  the  suffer- 
ings of  exile ;  and  yiT*  means  that  he  was  taught  and  accus- 
tomed to  have  the  yoke  of  exile  pass  over  him.  And  we  were  like 
men  hiding  their  faces  from  him ;  we  would  not  look  at  him 
because  of  the  loathing  we  felt  for  him,  and  we  accounted  him 
for  nought.  *The  prophet  Ezekiel  (xviii.  20)  says  the  son 
shall  not  suffer  for  the  iniquity  of  the  father,  nor  the  father  for 
the  iniquity  of  the  son  :  d  fortiori,  therefore,  one  man  cannot 
suffer  for  another  man,  or  one  people  for  another  people ;  what, 
then,  is  the  meaning  of  his  carrying  our  sicknesses  etc.  ?  What 
Jeremiah  says  in  his  Lamentations,  '  Our  fathers  sinned  and  are 
not,  and  we  bear  their  iniquities'  (v.  7),  is  not  parallel ;  this,  firstly, 
resembles  rather  Ex.  xx.  5,  visiting  the  iniquity  of  the  fathers 
tipon  tJie  children,  i.  e.  when  the  children  still  continue  to  adhere 
to  the  works  of  their  fathers,  according  to  the  addition  as 
regards  them  that  hate  me;  for  it  is  a  judgment  from  God 
when  the  son  bears  both  his  own  iniquity  and  his  father's 
as  well :  and,  secondly,  Jeremiah  is  speaking  in  the  style  of 
mourners,  whose  words,  springing  out  of  the  midst  of  pain 
and  distress,  are  not  regulated  by  measure  and  weight.  Here 
the  phrases  put  into  the  mouth  of  the  Gentiles,  such  as  '  he 
hath  carried  our  sicknesses'  etc.,  are  merely  the  expression 
of  their  own  thoughts ;  it  is  not  asseitcd  that  Israel  actually 
bore  the  iniquity  of  the  Gentiles,  but  the  latter  only  imagine  it 
to  be  the  case  when  they  see,  at  the  time  of  Deliverance,  that 
the  faith  which  Israel  adhered  to  was  the  true  one,  while 
that  which  they  themselves  had  adhered  to  was  the  false ; 
accordingly  they  say  (Jer.  xvi.  19),  'Our  fathers  have  inherited 
nothing  but  falsehood.'  Here,  then,  they  ask.  What  can  be  the 
cause  of  the  pains  endured  by  Israel  in  captivity  1  they  cannot 
be  attributed  to  their  own  iiii(piity,  for  they  adhered  to  the 
truth,  whereas  we  who  enjoyed  peace  and  tranquillity,  quietude 

E  2 


52  R.  DAVID   QAMin.  [liii.  5- 

aiid  security,  were  adhering  to  falsehood  ;  it  follows,  therefore, 
that  the  sickness  and  pain  which  ought  to  have  fallen  ui)on  us 
has  fallen  upon  them,  and  they  are  our  ransom  and  the  price  of 
our  atonement.  While  they  were  in  exile,  however,  we  thought 
that  they  were  smitten  by  the  hand  of  God  for  their  iniquity ; 
but  now  we  see  that  it  was  not  for  their  iniquity  but  for  ours, 
as  it  is  said,  '  He  suffered  pangs  for  our  transgressions.'  ^  7?ina 
is  Po'lel,  from  the  same  root  and  with  the  same  meaning  as  P^n 
(Ps.  xlviii.  7) ;  for  NOno  cf  Ps.  cxliii.  3.  lyjDI^e'  is  equivalent  to 
13?3  t/ie  whole  0/ us,  cf.  Jer.  xiii.  19  D^Dvti*  npjn,  i.  e.  it  is  carried 
away,  an  entire  or  complete  captivity  :  '  the  chastisements  which 
were  to  have  come  upon  us,  have  fallen,  the  whole  of  them,  upon 
Iiim.'  Others  explain  IJDvti'  in  its  ordinary  meaning :  '  the 
chastisements  which  ought  to  have  come  upon  us  for  our  sins 
wliile  vie  ivere  at  jpeace  have  fallen  on  him.'  in'^ISnn  is  from 
mi3n  (Ex,  xxi.  25),  only  without  the  Dagesh.  'Stripe'  like 
'  stroke,'  ver.  8,  is  used  mctai)horically  of  the  sufftrings  in  exile. 
We  were  healed,  as  Ex.  xv.  26;  or  he  may  allude  to  the  mis- 
fortunes which  would  fall  upon  the  Gentiles,  but  prevail  only  for 
a  time :  the  Gentiles  would  then  be  healed,  while  Israel  would 
be  left  in  calamity.  '^  Like  the  sheep,  those,  viz.  without  a 
shepherd  ;  he  uses  the  article  to  point  to  the  particular  kind 
of  sheep  who  would  go  astray,  those,  viz.  without  a  shepherd. 
Each  people  turned  after  its  own  god  :  but  now  we  see  that  all 
we  liad  gone  astray,  while  Israel  had  been  in  possession  of  the 
truth.  yjQn ;  it  is  the  penalty  which  lights  u2)on  them,  and  it 
is  God  who  causes  it  to  do  so  when  he  sends  misfortune  upon 
them,  py  means  here  the  penalty  of  sin  :  so  Gen.  xv.  16. 
''He  was  pressed  (for  money,  as  2  Kings  xxiii.  35,  Dent.  xv.  2) 
and  he  was  afflicted,  sc.  bodily  (for  his  body  was  afflicted  with 
stripes)  :  yet  notwithstanding  this,  he  opened  not  his  mouth — 
was  not  permitted  to  cry  out  and  complain  at  what  we  were 
doing  to  him,  but  was  as  a  sheep  led  to  slaughter,  which  does 
not  open  its  mouth  and  cry ;  and  as  a  lamb  dumb  before  her 
shearers.     The  simile  of  the  sheep  is  intended  to  express  hia 


-Hii.  9-]  R.  DAVID    QAMHI.  63 

bodily  affliction  and  exhaustion  ;  and  that  of  the  lamb  to  express 
the  extortion  he  PufFered,  which  is  compared  to  fleecing ;  the 
prophet  likens  Isi'ael  to  a  7m  (fom.)  and  not  to  a  ^2'2  (masc.), 
on  account  of  his  excessive  weakness  and  prostration  while 
in  captivity,  for  with  every  animal  the  female  is  weaker  than 
the  male.  n?D7N3  is  MiVel,  being  the  perf.  Nifal.  Yet  he  opened 
not  his  mouth,  neither  at  his  bodily  sufferings,  nor  at  the  loss  of 
his  possessions.  ^  From  the  coercion  of  exile,  in  which  he  was 
confined,  and  from  the  jtiJgment  of  captivity  when  judgments 
were  inflicted  upon  him,  —  from  all  this  7ie  was  taken  and 
redeemed.  And  who  was  there  that  said  or  suspected  (cf.  Gen. 
xxi.  7)  that  his  generation  would  attain  to  such  greatness  1 
nniK'  means  to  speak,  Po'lel  from  ^1t^' :  so  Ps.  cxliii.  5.  For  he 
was  cut  off  from  tlie  land  of  life,  viz.  when  he  was  in  exile  from 
his  own  country,  which  is  called  the  land  of  life,  as  in  Ps. 
cxvi.  9.  Or  the  phrase  may  be  explained  thus :  In  exile 
he  was  really  considered  to  have  been  cut  off  from  the  land 
of  the  living,  how  then  were  we  to  think  that  such  greatness 
as  this  would  ever  be  his  ?  For  the  transgression  of  my  people. 
Each  nation  will  make  this  confession,  saying  that  in  conse- 
quence of  their  own  transgression,  and  not  Israel's,  had  the 
stroke  fallen  upon  them.  ^  They  were  ever  killing  Israel  while 
in  exile,  just  as  though  he  had  done  wrong,  classing  him 
with  the  wicked  whom  men  put  to  death  on  account  of  their 
wickedness,  although  he  had  done  no  violence,  and  although 
there  was  no  word  of  guile  in  his  mouth.  The  meaning  of  |n''^ 
is  that  he  gave  himself  voluntarily  to  death  :  they  were  ready  to 
release  him  if  he  would  renounce  his  own  law  and  transfer 
his  allegiance  to  theirs ;  but  rather  than  do  this,  he  met  a 
voluntary  death,  cf.  Ps.  xliv,  23.  And  with  tlie  rich  also,  who 
are  slain  for  the  sake  of  their  wealth  :  this,  and  not  his  wicked- 
ness, was  the  cause  of  his  being  murdered.  The  plural  Vmo  is 
employed  because  they  used  to  be  put  to  death  in  many  ways  : 
some  were  burnt,  some  were  slain,  and  others  were  stoned — 
they  gave  themselves  over  to  any  form  of  death  for  the  sake  of 


54  R.  DAVID    QAMHI.  [Hii.  lo- 

the  unity  of  the  Godhead.  ^^  Still  in  his  pains  and  sufferings 
while  in  captivity  we  trace  nothing  but  the  operations  of  the 
divine  pleasure  :  Israel  himself  adhered  to  the  Law,  which  is  a 
law  of  faithfulness  (cf.  Ps.  cxix.  142),  and  suffered  martyrdom 
on  behalf  of  it ;  since  his  pains  cannot  imply  that  he  was 
caught  in  his  own  iniquities,  we  must  suppose  that  it  was  the 
divine  pleasure  thus  to  bruise  and  sicken  him  :  we  do  not  under- 
stand all  the  mysteries  of  God's  purposes.  (In  ""pnn  the  third 
radical  N  is  wanting :  although  the  verb  is  generally  n"7,  the 
word  before  us  is  formed  and  pronounced  as  though  it  were 
n"!?.)  Only  this  do  we  see  clearly,  that  he  will  receive  a  full 
reward  for  the  misfortune  he  has  endured ;  if,  then,  his  soul 
gives  itself  in  place  of  a  trespass-offering  (as  he  says  above, 
'  with  the  wicked '),  he  loill  see  much  seed,  as  the  prophet 
Zechariah  says  of  them  (x.  8,  10),  and  Ezekiel  (xxxvi.  37);  he 
will  lengtlien  days,  as  is  said  at  the  end  of  the  book  (Ixv.  22), 
and  by  Zechariah  (viii.  4)  ;  and  whereas  during  the  exile  it  was 
the  Lord's  pleasure  to  bruise  him,  in  return  for  this  the  Lord's 
pleasure  shall  prosper  in  his  hand,  for  he  will  multiply  him  and 
do  good  to  him  exceedingly. — At  this  point  the  words  of  the 
Gentiles  cciise,  and  those  of  God  begin.  ^^For  tlie  travail 
of  his  sold  which  he  bore  in  exile,  his  reward  shall  be  that 
he  will  see  and  be  satisfied,  i.  e.  he  will  see  prosperity  so  as 
to  be  satisfied  therewith.  'My  servant'  here  still  means  Israel, 
as  we  said  at  the  beginning  of  the  Parashah  ;  and  inyi  denotes 
his  knowledge  of  the  Lord,  as  xi.  9,  Jer.  xxxi.  33.  My  servant 
Israel,  who  will  be  righteous  and  know  the  Lord,  will,  by 
his  knowledge,  make  righteous  many  nations,  as  it  is  written. 
Is.  ii.  3,  '  He  will  teach  us  of  his  ways,  and  we  will  walk  in  his 
paths;'  and  by  his  righteousness  will  bear  the  iniquities  0^  the 
Gentiles,  for  by  it  there  will  be  peace  and  prosperity  in  the 
whole  world,  even  for  the  Gentiles.  ^^The  mighty  and  the 
strong  are  here  Gog  and  Magog,  and  the  peoples  who  come 
with  him  to  Jerusalem,  as  is  described  by  Zechariah  (xii.  14). 
And  this  glorious  fortune  will  be  his  because  he  poured  out 


-liii.  12.]  R.    DAVID    QAMHI.  55 

his  soul  to  die :  i.  e.  because  in  exile  he  resigned  himself  to 
death  at  the  hands  of  the  Gentiles :  their  wealth  will  be 
for  his  wealth  which  they  had  taken,  and  their  soul  for  his 
soul,  for,  as  Ezekiel  writes  (xxxix.  4),  'AH  the  host  of  Gog 
and  Magog  will  die  there.'  iT^yn  is  to  pour  out,  as  Gen.  xxiv. 
20,  but  in  a  different  conjugation  ;  and  ^  with  the  transgressors' 
is  like  ^  with  the  wicked,'  as  we  have  explained  the  words  in 
ver.  8.  And  lie  carried  tlie  sin  of  many  :  this  may  be  supposed 
to  refer  to  the  time  of  the  captivity ;  he  means  to  say  that  Israel 
hore  the  consequences  of  the  sin  of  many,  i.  e.  of  the  Gentiles 
when  they  sinned  against  him,  and  he  bore  the  sufferings  which 
their  sin  occasioned;  cf.  Ex.  v.  16.  Nevertheless,  he  continued 
interceding  for  the  wicked  who  were  transgressing  against  him, 
and  sought  blessings  on  their  land  from  the  Lord ;  cf.  Jer. 
xxix.  7.  The  Hif.  of  yjQ  is  used  with  the  same  idea  of  suppli- 
cation or  pi-ayer  in  lix.  16,  Jer.  xxxvi.  25.  The  reference  may, 
however,  be  to  the  time  of  deliverance  :  the  meaning  will  then 
be  similar  to  that  assigned  to  the  words,  '  He  will  bear  their 
iniquities,'  in  the  last  verse. 

I  should  like  to  ask  the  Nazarenes  [Christians]  who  explain 
this  Parashah  of  Jesus,  how  the  prophet  could  have  said,  '  He 
shall  be  lifted  up  and  lofty  exceedingly  V  If  this  alludes  to  the 
flesh,  Jesus  was  not  '  lifted  up '  except  when  he  was  suspended 
upon  the  cross  ;  if  it  refers  to  the  Godhead,  then  he  was  mighty 
and  lifted  up  from  the  beginning  [so  that  it  could  not  be  said, 
He  will  be  lifted  up].  Moreover,  the  prophet  says  to  them 
(ID^),  ver.  8,  but  then  he  ought  to  have  said  to  him  (17),  for  ID? 
is  plural,  being  equivalent  to  Qn7.  Again  he  says,  '  He  shall  see 
seed  :'  if  this  refers  to  his  flesh,  then  he  had  no  seed;  if  to 
his  Godhead,  as  the  literal  sense  is  inappropriate,  they  explain 
the  word  seed  as  alluding  to  his  disciples,  although  his  disciples 
are  nowhere  spoken  of  as  either  sons  or  seed.  He  says,  too, 
'  He  shall  lengthen  days;'  but  in  the  flesh  he  did  not  lengthen 
days,  and  if  he  says  of  his  Godhead  that  as  a  reward  [for 
suffering]   he    will    have   long   life,   are   not  the  days    of  God 


56  B.  DAVID    qAMHI.  [lili.  12. 

from  everlasting  to  everlasting  (cf.  Ps.  xc.  2)1  Lastly,  he  says, 
'And  he  interceded  for  the  transgressors;'  btit  if  he  is  God 
himself,  to  whom  could  he  intercede  ? — Our  Rabbis  a  explain  it 
of  Moses,  supposing  that  he  '  poured  out  his  soul  to  die '  when 
he  resigned  himself  to  death  (Ex.  xxxii.  32),  that  he  was 
'  numbered  with  the  transgressors '  because  he  was  numbered 
with  those  who  died  in  the  wilderness,  that  he  '  bore  the  sin  of 
many'  when  he  made  atonement  for  the  making  of  the  golden 
calf,  and  that  he  *  interceded  for  the  transgressors'  when  he 
sought  for  mercy  on  the  transgressions  of  Israel  b. 


»  See  above,  p.  8. 

''  The  MSS.  continue  with  the  translation  of  Yonathan  (see  No.  2). 


XIV.     R.   JACOB    BEN    REUBEN    (THE 
RABBANITE). 

The  Apostate  : — BeJiold  my  servant  .  .  .  and  interceded  for 
the  transgressors.  You  have  in  these  verses,  from  their  first 
letter  to  tlieir  last,  a  proof  as  clear  and  patent  as  noon-day  that 
what  we  assert  concerning  our  Messiah  is  incontrovertible ; 
there  is  no  need  then  to  say  more,  and  explain  how  each 
separate  verse  reveals  some  mystery  in  his  life,  and  declares 
plainly  all  the  principal  actions  which  he  accomplished,  or  how 
not  a  single  word  fell  to  the  ground  of  all  the  testimony  which 
the  prophet  here  presents. 

The  Unitarian  : — You  say  that  this  prophecy,  from  its  first 
letter  to  the  last,  is  uttered  in  reference  to  your  Messiah : 
consider  now  how  many  answers  can  be  given  to  you. 

I .  You  began  by  saying  that  the  royal  Psalmist  was  address- 
ing him  when  he  spoke  the  words,  '  Thou  art  fairer  than  the 
children  of  men'  etc.  (Ps.  xlv.  3);  you  say  also  that  Jeremiah 
speaks  of  him  similarly  as  fair  or  beautiful  (Ps.  xlviii.  3,  Jer. 
xi.  16) ;  and  add  that  all  this  testimony  respecting  him  is  true. 
And  now  you  go  on  to  assert  madly  that  the  words  '  so  marred 
was  his  countenance  bej'ond  man'  etc.  refer  to  him  likewise. 
But  how  can  this  be  when  you  already  admit  and  believe  that 
all  the  words  of  the  prophets  are  unfailing  and  true  ?  you  can 
be  only  perverting  their  words  and  corrupting  and  falsifying 
their  prophecies  if  you  maintain  that  when  the  Psalmist  speaks 
of  him  as  'beautiful,'  Isaiah  can  come  and  testify  that  his 
countenance  and  form  are  '  marred,'  or  that  he  is  '  despised  and 


58  R.  JACOB    BEN    REUBEN    (THE    RABBANITE).        [lii,  liii. 

forlorn  of  men  ;'  or  again,  that  if  Isaiah  says  that  he  has 
'no  form  nor  comeliness,'  Jeremiah  can  call  him  a  'flourishing 
olive  tree,  beautiful  with  well-formed  fruit.' 

2.  Consider  whether  the  general  connection  of  the  verses 
tends  to  favour  your  arguments :  it  seems  to  me  to  go  far 
in  the  opposite  direction.  With  respect  to  the  meaning  of  the 
first  two  verses,  in  which  the  prophet  says  that  the  '  servant 
shall  prosper,'  the  words  'many  were  astonished'  and  'his 
countenance  was  marred '  must  in  accoi'dance  with  the  context 
refer  to  the  time  before  his  success  and  the  attainment  of  his 
kingdom,  while  the  cxj)ression  '  he  will  sprinkle  many  nations,' 
i.  e.  will  expel  them  from  their  kingdoms,  must  allude  to  the 
period  following  his  success.  But  now  when  in  your  argument 
you  assert  that  this  your  Messiah  is  God,  and  that  all  the 
essence  of  the  Godhead  resides  in  him,  in  what  sense  can  you 
understand  these  verses  ?  and  how  docs  the  prophet  announce  of 
him,  as  a  future  fact,  that  he  will  be  '  exalted,  lifted  up,  and  lofty 
exceedingly?'  Is  not  the  Godhead  (as  it  is  written.  Is.  Ivii.  15) 
high  and  exalted  continually  ?  Who  supposes  that  God  could 
first  of  all  be  in  a  state  of  depression,  affliction,  and  disfigurement, 
out  of  which  he  would  afterwards  raise  himself,  and  be  exalted 
above  those  who  knew  him  1  Were  this  the  case,  we  should  no 
longer  be  able  to  recognise  him  as  omnipotent;  for  although 
we  know  that  he  is  represented  as  saying  (Is.  xxxiii.  10),  '  Now 
will  I  arise,  now  will  I  exalt  myself,'  yet  we  clearly  must  not 
suppose  the  word  7ioiv  to  imply  that  he  was  not  exalted  pre- 
viously, because  it  is  the  custom  of  Scripture  to  use  such 
language  repeatedly,  as  'Arise,  0  God'  (Num.  x.  35),  'Awake, 
why  sleepest  thou  ?'  (Ps.  xliv.  24.)  To  express  the  idea  of  gi-eat- 
ness  or  might,  the  Creator  is  often  spoken  of  in  terms  strictly 
ap])licable  only  to  what  possesses  a  body  :  but  far  be  it  from  us 
to  find  him  described  in  any  passage  whatever  as  being  in  a 
condition  of  depression  or  disfigurement. 

3.  According  to  your  view,  the  prophet  declares  that  he  was 
'  despised    and  forlorn  of  men,'   a  '  man  of  pains  and  known 


Hi,  liii.]       R.  JACOB  ben  reuben  (the  rabbanite).  59 

of  sickness  : '  now  it  seems  to  me  that  no  one  would  be  called 
'known  of  sickness'  or  a  'man  of  pains'  except  a  man  who 
suffered  from  severe  sicknesses  continually  :  and  I  know,  in  fact, 
that  you  will  not  find  either  in  your  own  New  Testament,  or  in 
the  words  of  the  wise  men  of  your  own  religion  who  tell  you 
about  the  Messiah  and  his  deeds,  or,  in  fact,  in  any  book  in  the 
world,  that  he  ever  had  a  pain — even  a  headache — up  to  the 
day  of  his  death  when  he  was  delivered  into  the  hands  of  those 
that  smote  him :  we  see  then  that  the  very  terms  themselves 
which  are  here  employed,  '  pain'  and  '  sickness,'  were  not 
realised  in  his  person,  and  consequently  cannot  apply  to  him. 
The  chastisements  which  he  endured  in  the  hour  of  death  would 
not  be  spoken  of  as  a  'sickness,'  but  rather  as  an  'attack'  or 
'blow'  (nyjs),  as  I  Kings  ii,  25,  29.  And  again,  instead  of 
saying  he  was  '  smitten  of  God,'  he  should  rather  have  said 
he  was  '  smitten  of  men,'  as  was  the  fact :  only  one  visited  with 
various  kinds  of  diseases  is  said  to  be  smitten  of  God. 

4.  If  these  verses  refer  to  your  Messiah,  who  you  say  is  God, 
then  they  contain  themselves  the  refutation  of  your  assertions. 
It  is  written,  '  He  was  smitten  of  God  : '  it  follows  then — and 
your  own  mouth  assents  against  you — that  God  smites  him  and 
he  is  smitten  by  God  :  how  then  can  it  be  said  that  he  is  himself 
God  1  Again,  it  is  written  that  the  Lord  '  laid  on  him  the 
iniquity  of  us  all  :'  as  the  patient,  then,  he  is  inferior  to  God 
who  is  the  agent.  The  same  conclusion  will  be  drawn  from  the 
words,  '  The  Lord  was  pleased  to  bruise  him  : '  he  was  the 
bruised,  and  God  the  bruiser ;  again  then  he  is  inferior  to 
God.  But  you  assert  that  he  is  God  himself;  it  appears  then 
that  the  witnesses  whom  you  cite  give  their  witness  against 
you,  and  attest  the  contraiy  of  what  you  affirm. 

5.  It  is  said,  '  There  was  a  stroke  for  them'  (1D7) ;  but  if  this 
refers  to  the  Messiah  it  ought  to  have  been  '  for  him'  (17)  :  for 
'h  is  singular,  but  the  prophet  uses  1D7,  which  is  plural.  Again 
it  is  written  1CDJ  D-'N  D''"J'n  D^<,  and  even  though  this  verse 
should  mean  (as  you  allege  it  does  mean)  '  because  he  made  his 


60  R.JACOB    BEN   EEUBEN  (tHE    RABBANITE).        [Hi,  liii. 

soul  a  trespass-offering'  (DN  being  equivalent  to  '3,  as  Ex.  xxii. 
24,  where,  inasmuch  as  it  is  a  duty  to  lend,  we  may  render 
Because  thou  must  lend,  etc.),  yet  w^e  know  as  a  fact  that  he  did 
not  prolong  his  days  upon  the  earth  or  see  seed  :  rather  Ps.  Iv. 
24  was  fulfilled  in  him,  for  he  did  not  reach  half  the  age  usually 
attained  by  man,  which  is  seventy  years.  ^loreover,  the  prophet 
each  time  calls  him  my  servant  (which,  as  applied  to  the  God- 
head, is  a  term  of  indignity) ;  understand  then  and  know  truly 
that,  as  I  once  replied  to  you  before,  when  we  saw  that  God 
appointed  his  '  servant'  as  a  witness  (xliii.  10),  so  here  the  same 
expression  is  used  of  no  one  except  Israel,  who  were  '  afflicted 
and  smitten'  by  the  hands  of  the  Gentiles ;  and  of  whom,  there- 
fore, the  whole  Parashah  is  to  be  expounded  unhesitatingly  ; 
Israel  being  called  my  servant,  as  in  xliv.  2,  and  many  other 
passages. 

And  so  we  cannot  take  your  arguments  into  consideration  : 
your  view  is  not  to  be  substantiated  ;  it  has  never  existed  and 
never  been  created. 


XV.    JACOB  BEN  REUBEN  (THE  QARAITE). 

LII.  "il/y  servant,  i.  e.  the  'wise'  {3faskilim)^  who  will  learn 
from  the  mouth  of  Elijah,  will  be  high  and  exalted  and  lofty 
exceedingly,  i.  e.  will  rise  continually  in  dignity.  "  Many  were 
amazed  at  thee,  i.  e.  at  the  sight  of  thy  countenance ;  and  simi- 
larly his  countenance,  the  countenance  viz.  of  this  '  wise '  one, 
toas  marred  beyond  man.  nxini,  i.  e.  his  likeness,  figure.  Accord- 
ing to  another  opinion  this  verse  means,  As  many  were  astonished 
at  thee,  so  will  his  countenance  be  finer,  sleeker,  and  better 
favoured  than  any  man's:  cf.  T\TW12^  Lev.  vii.  35.  ^^Like  a  man 
sprinkling  water,  i.  e.  casting  it  out  of  his  hand,  so  will  he 
cast  and  drive  many  nations  out  of  the  world.  Because  what 
was  not  told  them,  i.  e.  this  great  glory,  have  they  seen,  and 
wisdom  which  they  had  never  heard  of,  have  they  observed. 
According  to  another  view,  TW  means  'he  will  teach  them' 
wholesome  doctrine. 

LIII.  ^  Who  hath  believed  ?  So  the  remnant  will  say  to  one 
another.  ^The  comparison  with  a  sucker  indicates  that  they 
will  be  weak  and  afflicted.  Before  him  means  in  his  sanc- 
tuary. Like  a  root  shooting  up  in  dry  ground,  which  has 
no  beauty,  so  the  remnant  were  devoid  of  all  good  counsels,  and 
bad  no  comeliness  in  their  apparel.  ^Despised  in  appearances 
and  withdrawn  from  men,  i.  e.  taking  no  part  in  their  festivals, 
or  marriage-rejoicings.  *  He  was  knoivn  to  be  sick  continually  : 
he  was  like  a  leper  from  whom  all  hide  their  faces.     *He  was 

»  See  p.  19,  note  b.  ^  C'onip.  below,  p.  67. 


C2  JACOB    BEN    REUBEN    (THE    QARAITE).  [liii.  6- 

wounded,  was  troubled,  and  wqit  for  our  iniquities,  because 
lie  was  grieved  at  them.  According  to  another  view,  terrified  and 
tremhling ;  cf.  7?inD  Prov.  xxvi.  lo.  The  chastisement  for 
breaking  the  law,  the  observance  of  which  would  bo  our  peace, 
fell  to  his  phare.  imiDriDI ;  if  he  had  associated  himself  with  us  as 
he  did  before  \l)ij  his  xoiion  with  us],  he  would  then  have  healed 
us,  and  delivered  us  from  exile.  According  to  others,  if  we  had 
associated  ourselves  with  him  \hy  our  union  loilh  hivi\,  Ave 
should  have  been  healed.  R.  Yonahc  explains  the  word  as  an 
infinitive  with  pronominal  suffix,  'by  bruising  him:'  compare 
Dnp  Hos.  xi.  3.  *  yjan,  i.  e.  heard  his  prayer,  and  took 
away  from  us  the  iniquity  of  us  all.  Or,  caused  to  meet, 
brought  upon  him,  troubles  at  the  hands  of  the  Gentiles 
for  our  iniquities.  ^CJJ  ;  the  rulers  oppressed  him.  njyj  Nini ; 
every  one  cursed  him.  ?mD  ;  like  a  lamb,  because  they  seized 
his  riches  and  possessions.  ^The  Lord  rescued  him  from  the 
prison-house,  and  the  punishments  of  revenge.  Who  is  able  to 
tell  the  years  of  weariness  Avhich  passed  over  him  ?  Wlio  is  to 
be  found  in  his  generation  to  recount  the  evils  which  befel  him  ? 
D^^n  pNO ;  from  the  happiness  and  enjoyments  of  the  world. 
The  word  113?  shews  that  by  the  '  wise '  (lii.  1 3)  must  be  under- 
stood more  than  one  :  the  statement  cannot  therefore  be  made, 
as  is  asserted  by  some,  in  view  of  the  Messiah.  ^As  he  ex- 
perienced the  long  duration  of  the  exile,  the  expectation  grew 
upon  him<J  that  he  would  die  in  cajitivity  toith  the  toicked. 
Whenever  the  authorities  sought  tribute  of  the  rich  that  were 
in  exile,  the  latter  imposed  it  upon  the  '  wise,'  who  thus  had 
to  pay  as  much  as  the  rich  themselves  did  :  if  then  the  rich  paid 
one  piece  of  gold  each,  they  paid  the  same.  vni?03  means  his 
bust.  ^"He  bruised,  i.e.  humbled  him,  so  that  he  became  as 
one  who  was  sick.  According  to  others,  he  bruised  himself,  viz. 
in  inflicting  upon  himself  sackcloth  and  fasting.     Or  1ND1  may 

■=  See  his  Booh  of  Roots  (cd.  Neubaucr,  Oxford,  iSj.:;),  i.  col.  208. 
•*  Lit.  '  he  made  or  put  it  in  his  heart  that  .  .  .  : '  cf.  above,  p.  46. 


-liii,  12.]  JACOB   BEN    REUBEN    (tHE    QARAITE).  63 

l)e  an  infinitive  referring  to  IK'DJ  ;  cf.  Job  xxxii.  2.  If  his  soul, 
the  soul  of  the  remnant,  makes  as  it  were  a  tresjmss-offeri/Kj  to 
its  Lord — the  verb  being  transitive,  and  the  '  soul '  its  subject : 
or,  '  if  thou,  Lord,  makest  his  soul  as  it  were  a  trespass-offering,' 
i.  e.  if  the  fastings  which  he  undergoes  are  accepted  before  thee 
as  a  trespass-offering,  then,  as  every  trespass-offering  makes  some 
atonement,  so  the  work  of  this  '  wise'  one  will  atone  for  the  ini- 
quities of  Israel.  He  tvill  see  seed,  whereas  he  thought  that  he 
would  perish  in  exile,  the  prophet  now  declares  that  he  Avill  be 
in  this  very  different  condition :  "  for  the  affliction  of  his  soul, 
he  will  see  prosperity  and  be  satisfied  with  pleasures;  and  by  his 
hiowledge  or  instruction  my  servant,  the  just  one,  will  justify 
the  many,  and  hear,  i.  e.  take  from  them  their  iniquities. 
^"-  Because  of  his  service  and  ministry,  I  will  give  him  a  double 
inheritance  amongst  the  many,  as  it  is  said  (Is.  Ixi.  7),  In  their 
land  they  possess  the  double.  Or,  I  will  divide  him  a  portion  in 
the  midst  of  the  great — he  shall  receive  a  possession  in  the  city 
mentioned  in  Ezekiel :  and  toith  the  mighty  he  shall  divide  the 
spoil  which  the  Messiah  and  his  sons  will  take,  and  some  of  it 
will  be  given  to  these  'wise'  ones.  He  was  numbered  with  the 
transgressors,  so.  in  the  penalty  which  befel  them. 


XVI. 

LII.  "  Behold,  my  servant  the  Branch  shall  go  in  the  right 
way,  he  shall  be  high  and  exalted  and  lofty  exceedingly.  "  As  the 
genei'ations  of  Israel  had  been  desolated  for  many  years  at  the 
sight  of  thee,  because  his  looks  were  marred  almost  beyond  man, 
and  his  form  beyond  the  sons  of  Adam  :  ^^so  shall  he  sprinkle  the 
blood  of  many  nations,  before  him  kings  shall  shut  their  mouth 
and  be  dumb  ;  for  that  which  was  not  told  them  they  have  seen, 
and  tliat  which  they  had  not  heard  they  have  observed. 

LIII.  '  Who  hath  believed  our  report  1  and  upon  whom  except 
us  has  the  arm  of  God  been  i-evealed  1  ^  And  the  righteous  of 
Israel  came  up  like  a  sucker  before  him  to  suck  in  his  knowledge, 
and  he  of  them  that  was  firmly  rooted  in  the  commandments, 
like  a  tree  stretching  out  its  roots  to  springs  of  water,  out  of 
the  dry  ground  of  the  captivity ;  he  had  ^  form  and  comeliness  ; 
we  beheld  him,  and  [saw  that]  he  had  the  look  of  prophecy, 
and  found  his  appearance  full  of  beauty.  '  Despised  in  his  own 
eyes,  and  keeping  apart  from  men,  he  makes  their  kings  sick, 
and  by  his  crying  for  them  causes  each  to  become  a  man  of 
pains  and  known  to  sickness ;  God  hides  his  mercy  from  them 
as  he  hides  liis  face  fi'om  us  in  the  time  of  wrath ;  he  makes 
every  one  of  them  despised  and  so  esteems  him  not.  *  Surely 
for  our  offences  (which  were  our  sicknesses)  he  has  obtained 
forgiveness,  and  our  sins,  which  were  the  cause  of  our  pains,  he 
bare  in  obtaining  it ;  yet  we  did  esteem  ourselves  to  be  each  of 
ua  bruised  for  his  iniquities,  smitten  of  God,  and  punished. 
'  He  will  build  our  sanctuary,  which  was  delivered  up  for  our 

"  The  author  apparently  understood  «'?  in  the  sense  of  ^b. 


liii.  6-12.]  XVI.  65 

offences,  and  destroyed  for  our  iniquities  ;  the  teaching  of  our 
peace,  i.  e.  the  instruction  of  tlie  instructor,  is  upou  him,  and 
by  union  with  him  we  are  healed.  *'A11  we  like  sheep  have 
gone  astray  ;  we  have  turned  every  one  to  his  own  way,  yet 
God  receives  his  intercession  for  the  iniquities  of  us  all.  ''When 
he  draws  near  to  the  end  of  his  career,  he  will  be  answered 
before  opening  his  mouth,  his  enemies  will  be  delivered  before 
him  like  a  sheep  which  is  led  to  the  slaughter,  and  like  a  lamb 
which  before  her  shearers  is  dumb ;  but  he  will  not  open  his  mouth. 
*  From  confinement  in  captivity  and  from  judgment  every  one 
amongst  us  is  taken,  and  who  of  us  can  tell  in  the  time  of 
captivity  what  God  will  do  with  his  generation  ]  after  the  king  of 
our  enemies  has  been  cut  off  from  the  land  of  life,  when  my  people 
abandons  the  transgression  which  has  lighted  on  them?  ^Each 
one  of  the  wicked  makes  Gehenna  his  grave,  and  the  rich  [makes 
it]  his  high  place,  so  that  none  of  them  will  have  power 
to  do  evil,  neither  shall  any  word  of  deceit  find  its  place  in 
their  mouth.  '"  But  God  was  pleased  to  depress  Israel  in  the 
latter  end  of  the  captivity,  in  order  that  they  might  repent  [and 
turn  to  him]  before  their  king  appears,  and  therefore  has  he  made 
them  sick ;  0  that  thou  wouldst  take  his  confession  as  the  sacrifice 
of  his  soul,  that  so  he  might  see  the  king,  prolong  days,  and 
that  the  pleasure  of  God  might  prosper  in  his  hand  !  "  From 
the  travail  of  the  captivity  he  shall  deliver  his  soul,  he  shall 
see  vengeance  on  his  enemies  and  be  satisfied  with  the  plunder 
of  their  possessions;  by  his  knowledge  my  servant  Israel  will 
make  many  righteous  [and  lead  them]  in  a  lighteous  law,  and 
their  iniquities  he  will  bear  in  obtaining  their  forgiveness.  "As 
a  reward  for  this  I  will  divide  for  him  the  spoil  of  Gog  who  are 
the  many,  and  the  cities  of  mighty  nations  he  shall  divide  as 
prey,  because  he  laid  bare  liis  soul  for  death  and  gave  trans- 
gressors a  share  in  the  law,  and  obtained  forgiveness  for  the  sins 
of  many ;  and  God  for  his  sake  will  receive  intercession  for 
transgressors. 


XVII. 

LII.  "  Behold  my  servant,  i.  e.  those  who  correct  and  *  make 
many  wise'  (of.  Dan.  xi.  33,  xii.  3),  and  '  who  sigh  and 
gi-oan'  for  all  the  wickednesses  of  the  people  (cf.  Ezek.  ix.  4), 
vnll  in  those  days  he  very  j^^osperous.  The  expression  '  my 
servant'  connects  the  passage  with  1.  10;  and  mention  is  here 
made  of  his  affliction  and  sicknesses,  as  in  Ps.  Ixxiii.  14,  and  as 
you  may  see  in  the  cases  of  Elijah,  Jeremiah,  and,  in  fact,  all  the 
prophets — even  Moses  (Num.  xi.  15).  You  may  see,  too,  how 
Daniel  endured  misery  and  sickness  on  account  of  the  destruc- 
tion of  his  people,  and  sought  mercy  for  them  with  fasting, 
weeping,  and  wailing ;  and  all  the  prophets  did  the  same.  And 
this  is  what  is  here  meant  by  the  '  stroke,'  and  the  '  stripe,'  and 
the  '  chastisement,'  and  the  '  bruising,'  and  the  '  sickness.'  The 
prophets  also  were  despised  and  of  no  estimation  in  the  eyes  of 
the  nations,  and  all  that  saw  them  mocked  at  them ;  even  their 
own  people  despised  them,  saying  that  they  were  smitten  for 
their  own  iniquity  and  sin,  and  that  there  was  '  no  salvation  for 
them  in  God'  (Ps.  iii.  3).  The  Deity  here  declares  that  his 
servant  was  not  smitten  and  chastised  for  his  own  iniquity,  but 
that  he  sighed  and  gi'oaned  for  the  wickedness  of  his  people, 
and  suffered  humiliation  and  affliction,  and  humbled  his  soul  in 
order  to  seek  mercy  for  them.  ^*  Because  many  in  the  past  were 
astonished  at  tliee,  because  thou  wast  despised  and  forlorn  of 
men,  a  man  of  pains  and  known  to  sickness,  and  were  in  wonder 
at  thy  form  and  countenance,  because  thou  wast  not  like  other 
men,   so  will  thy  looks   be   esteemed  (nnti'D)    above  those  of 


lii.  iS-liii. 4-]  XVII.  67 

the  rest  of  mankind,  and  as  many  were  astonished  at  thee,  and 
did  not  esteem  thee,  but,  on  the  contrary,  removed  thee  from 
them,  so  now  wilt  thou,  too,  spmnkle  and  cast  away  from  thee 
many  nations,  n^l^'0,  as  always,  means  esteemed  and  precious, 
as  rWiVu?  (Ex.  xxix.  29)  ;  cf.  Lev.  xxii.  25,  Mai.  i.  14,  in  both 
of  which  places  T\TW12  signifies  fat  and  precious,  as  I  have 
explained  in  my  commentary  on  those  passages,  although  the 
form  of  the  word  is  irregular.  A  different  sense  may  be 
obtained  by  connecting  nti'KD  with  the  p  which  immediately 
follows  it,  as  Ex.  i.  1 2  :  as  they  were  astonished,  viz.  in  the  past, 
at  the  humiliation  of  his  countenance,  so  now  will  his  coun- 
tenance be  esteemed  and  thought  great.  ^'^At  him — at  the 
terror  of  him,  at  his  exaltation  and  regal  majesty  even  kings 
will  close  tlieir  moutJis :  they  will  be  unable  to  speak  a 
word  or  to  open  their  lips;  for  what  was  not  told  tJiem  by 
others  tliey  will  have  seen  from  him,  and  lohat  they  had  not  heard 
from  others  they  will  have  understood  from  him.  The  prophet 
then  speaks  as  follows  respecting  what  is  thus  told  them  by 
him. 

LIII.  ^'  ^  WJio  etc.,  the  language  of  incredulity  or  surprise,  as 
Gen.  xxi.  7,  If  it  had  been  said  to  us  that  this  man  was  thus 
prosperous  and  thriving  after  he  had  been  despised  and  forlorn 
of  men,  a  man  of  pains  and  known  to  sickness,  who  would  have 
believed  the  report  ?  And  upon  whom  was  the  arm  of  the  Lord 
ever  revealed  so  as  for  him  to  be  turned  to  another  man  (cf. 
I  Sam.  X.  6),  as  it  is  now  revealed  upon  this  one,  who,  like  the 
suckers  of  a  tree  before  God,  and  like  a  root  springing  out  of 
the  dry  earth,  rises  up  and  grows  great  out  of  the  midst  of 
sicknesses  and  chastenings  ?  and  who  before  had  no  form  and 
no  comeliness  and  no  beauty  when  we  looked  at  him,  but  is  now 
so  graceful  and  comely  that  we  ourselves  desire  to  be  like  him. 
^He  was  despised  by  every  one,  forlorn  of  men,  and  knoivn,  i.  e. 
trained  and  accustomed,  to  sickness,  and  was  as  though  the  Holy 
One  were  hiding  his  face  from  him  and  chastening  him  in  anger 
and  displeasm'e.     Thus  was  he  amongst  us  in  the  past :  *  but 

F  2 


68  XVII.  [liii.  5- 

now  we  know  that  he  was  not  smitten  for  his  own  iniquity  and 
transgression,  but  that  it  was  our  sicknesses — those  which  for 
our  sins  we  ought  to  have  endured — that  he  carried,  sighing 
and  groaning,  and  afflicting  himself  with  sickness  (as  Amos 
vi.  6)  on  account  of  the  cahxmity  which  was  about  to  fall  upon 
us  and  the  misfortune  which  was  to  be  our  lot.  And  the  pain 
wherewith  we  should  have  let  our  heart  be  pained  for  our 
misfortune  he  bare;  but  we  laid  not  our  calamities  to  heart, 
we  abandoned  ourselves  to  luxury  and  pleasure,  'slaying  oxen 
and  killing  sheep,  eating  flesh  and  drinking  wine'  (Is.  xxii.  13), 
thinking,  like  the  women  in  Ziou  and  Samaria  (Amos  vi.  i), 
who  did  not  expect  evil  to  come  upon  them,  that  to-morrow  will 
be  as  to-day  (Is.  Ivi.  12),  and  saying  (cf.  Jer.  xxi.  13),  Who 
shall  come  down  against  us  ?  or  who  shall  enter  into  our  habita- 
tions 1  And  therefore  did  we  esteem  him  stricken  and  smitten 
of  God  and  afflicted — thought  that  for  his  sins  the  Deity  was 
thus  chastening  and  bruising  him.  ^But  he  was  just,  and  was 
wounded  (??in  as  Is.  li.  g)/or  our  transgressions  :  the  chastenings 
which,  instead  of  the  peace  that  as  we  blessed  ourselves  in  our 
heart  (Jer.  xxiii.  17)  we  looked  forward  to,  we  ought  to  have 
felt  and  suffei'ed  in  sickness  for  our  calamity,  were  all  ujpon  lam 
and  not  upon  us:  he  was  sick  and  bi-uised,  we  were  careless 
and  secure.  And  hy  his  stripes  and  sickness,  which  we  ought 
thus  to  have  laid  to  heart  and  made  our  own,  we  were  healed, 
though  we  did  not  perceive  it ;  for  we  kept  saying,  Peace,  peace, 
when  there  was  no  peace  (Jer.  vi.  14,  viii.  11),  though  the  true 
prophets,  who  saw  what  would  happen,  groaned,  stricken  down 
and  sick ;  and  hence  we  were  healed.  ^  We  all  went  astray 
like  sheep,  each  pursuing  after  his  own  advantage ;  hut  the 
Lord  caused  the  iniquity  of  us  all  to  meet  (yjQn  as  Jer.  xv.  11) 
upon  him,  in  that  he  afflicted  and  humbled  himself  with  groan- 
ings  and  sickness  on  account  of  our  calamity.  ''He  was 
oppressed  with  pains  and  chastenings,  and  with  the  reproaches 
and  contempt  and  shame  and  spitting  which  we  heaped  upon 
liim ;  yet  he  oj)ened  not  his  mouth,  but  accepted  the  judgment 


-liii.  10.]  XVII.  69 

thus  passed  upon  him  as  deserved,  ^  From  the  confine- 
ment in  whioli  he  was  kept  because  of  those  who  reproached 
and  despised  him,  and  sought  to  take  away  his  life,  and  from 
the  judgments  and  chastenings  and  pains  which  fell  upon  him, 
he  was  almost  taken  out  of  the  land  of  the  living  and  died  :  hut 
his  generation  ("in  as  xxxviii.  12),  his  seed  and  descendants, 
who  could  tell  of? — who,  while  he  was  still  in  distress,  could 
think  that  he  would  see  seed  and  lengthen  days  1  for  in  the  eyes 
of  all  that  saw  him  he  seemed  to  have  been  cut  off,  removed 
from  the  land  of  the  living,  because  of  the  transgression  of  my 
people,  [because  of]  the  stroke  which  ought  to  have  been  theirs. 
^And  when  he  reached  the  gates  of  death,  he  made  his  grave 
ivith  the  wicked :  he  means  to  say  that  he  was  wicked,  and 
consequently  had  to  meet  the  death  of  the  wicked  and  die  in 
his  sin,  thereby  accepting  the  sentence  passed  upon  him.  And 
this,  although  he  had  done  no  violence,  by  which  he  might 
justly  have  incurred  a  sentence  like  this  :  for  he  might  have  been 
rebellious,  and  reasoned  against  God's  attribute  of  justice. 
And  if,  after  it  is  said  that  he  did  no  violence  and  that  there 
was  no  deceit  in  his  mouth,  you  ask  how  he  came  into  such 
a  situation,  the  reason  is  given  in  the  next  verse.  ^''The  Lord 
VMS  pleased  to  bruise  and  sicken  him,  in  order  to  try  him  and 
prove  him  and  purify  him :  because,  lo,  God  '  trusteth  not 
his  servants'  (Job  iv.  18),  but  brings  them  into  temptation  so  as 
to  prove  them  :  he  tries  him,  because  if  his  soul  lays  guilt, 
sc.  against  himself,  if  it  condemns  himself  and  justifies  God's 
sentence  of  suffering,  then  he  will  heal  him  and  preserve  him 
alive  :  he  will  see  seed  and  lengthen  days,  and  the  pleasure  of  the 
Lord,  i.e.  to  do  judgment  and  justice  in  the  earth,  to  'break 
the  teeth  of  the  wicked,  and  to  deliver  the  afflicted  from 
him  that  is  too  strong  for  him,  the  afflicted  and  needy  from 
him  that  spoileth  him'  (Jer.  ix.  23,  Job  xxix.  17,  Ps.  xxxv.  10), 
%vilJ  prosper  in  his  hand ;  for  he  will  give  him  dominion  and 
greatness  and  strength  to  judge  the  afflicted  of  the  people, 
and  bruise  the  oppressor,  to  give  sentence  for  his  people  in 


70  XVII.  [liii,  II,  12. 

justice  and  for  his  afflicted  with  judgment  (Ps.  Ixxii.  2,  4). 
"Then  for  the  chastenings  which  he  thus  bore  in  the  past, 
he  will  see  seed,  he  will  prolong  and  have  his  fill  of  life ;  hy  Ms 
knowledge  he  will  justify  many,  and  deliver  the  afflicted  from 
him  that  is  too  strong  for  him,  and  the  iniquities  of  the  many, 
the  sins  which  one  man  commits  against  another,  he  will  hear  : 
all  will  rest  upon  him ;  he  will  carry  their  '  cumbrance,  and 
burden,  and  strife'  (Deut.  i.  12),  and  upon  him  will  it  devolve 
to  order  all  things,  for  '  his  lips  will  keep  knowledge,  and 
teaching  will  they  seek  from  his  mouth'  (Mai.  ii.  7).  DniJiy  is 
leurs  forfaits  in  French.  ^"^  Therefore  I  loill  divide  him  riches 
and  honour,  because  he  poured  out  (esvida)  Jiis  soul  to  die  for  my 
sake,  and  was  numbered  with  the  transgressors  in  sickness  and 
chastenings,  as  though  he  had  been  really  guilty,  and  bad 
accepted  the  condemnation  passed  upon  him  as  just.  But  he 
carried  the  sin  or  guilt  of  many  and  their  pain ;  and  interceded 
for  transgressors,  prayed  for  them  to  me  that  I  would  have 
mercy  on  them,  although  it  was  through  them  that  he  himself 
was  smitten. 


XVIII.    R.  YOSEPH    BEN   NATHAN. 

This  Parashah  is  applied  by  the  heretics  to  the  Nazarene. 
A  very  learned  apostate  came  once  into  the  presence  of  the 
great  R.  Yoseph  B'khor-Shora  :  How,  he  asked,  canst  thou  meet 
the  evidence  of  this  Parashah  1  He  replied,  0  fool,  thine  ears 
shall  hear  that  which  thou  utterest  from  thy  mouth  :  the  prophet 
calls  him  his  '  servant,'  but  if  he  is  God,  how  could  he  be 
termed  a  servant  1  At  once  the  apostate  rent  his  clothes  and 
rolled  himself  in  ashes  and  repented  [of  his  apostasy] .  Then  he 
speaks  of  their  having  seen  what  '  had  not  been  told  them,'  i.  e. 
the  wondrous  and  mighty  acts  of  the  Deity  ;  but  do  they  possess 
no  record  of  the  Creation  as  told  in  Genesis,  and  of  what  God 
did  to  the  generation  of  the  Deluge,  and  to  the  generation  of  the 
Dispersion,  to  Pharaoh  and  the  kings  of  Canaan,  and  the  cleaving 
of  the  Red  Sea,  and  all  the  miracles  and  mighty  acts  which  were 
achieved  before  the  birth  of  the  Nazarene?  Again  he  says, 
*  For  the  transgression  of  my  people  was  he  stricken  /  but  did 
he  meet  death  for  any  other  cause  but  in  order  to  wipe  out  the 
sin  of  our  forefathers  in  having  eaten  of  the  tree  of  knowledge, 
for  which  all  were  going  down  into  Gehenna  ?  This  being  so, 
however,  he  ought  rather  to  have  wi'itten, '  For  the  transgression 
of  Adam  and  Eve  was  he  stricken.'  Again  he  says,  'Although 
he  did  no  violence:'  but  if  he  is  God,  towards  whom  could 
he  behave  violently  1  do  not  all  belong  to  God  1  '  God  is  judge  : 
he  setteth  down  one  and  raiseth  up  another'  (Ps.  Ixxv.  8). 

»  A  celebrated  French  Rabbi  of  the  twelfth  century.  A  commentary 
composed  by  him  on  the  Pentateucli  is  still  extant. 


72  ii.  yoseph  ben  nathan.  [hi.  13- 

The  Exposition. 

LII.  ^^Behold  my  servant  shall  prosper.  He  means  Israel, 
who  is  called  God's  sei-vant,  as  xliii.  10,  xliv.  i,  xlix.  3.  7"'3B'''  is 
to  be  2y)'osperous,  as  Deut.  xxix.  8,  i  Sam.  xviii.  14.  He  shall  be 
high  and  exalted,  because  their  'horn  will  be  exalted  in  honour' 
(Ps.  cxii.  9).  '^*As  many  were  astonislied,  viz.  at  Israel's  depres- 
sion, as  it  is  written,  'He  hath  broken  the  covenant,'  etc. 
(xxxiii.  8),  and  rightly  so  (p  as  Num.  xxvii.  7),  because  his  coun- 
tenance ivas  marred  beyond  man,  so  he  will  conquer  (cf.  Ixiii.  3) 
many  nations  :  ^^at  him  kings  will  close  their  mouths  (Job  v.  16) ; 
they  will  be  dumb,  and  not  know  what  to  say ;  for  ivhat  was  riot 
told  them  have  they  seen,  as  though  to  say,  they  only  knew  of  the 
depression  of  Israel,  they  had  not  seen  his  greatness. 

LIU.  ^  Who  believed  our  report  ?  who  was  there  that  believed 
this  prophecy  ?  and  upon  zvhom  loas  the  arm  of  the  Lord 
revealed  1  "^  Like  a  sucker  or  young  plant  which  bursts  forth 
and  springs  up,  and  like  a  flower  rising  out  of  the  dry  earth,  so 
was  Israel  born  (Ixvi.  8)  and  sprang  up.  He  had  no  form  and 
no  comeliness — he  was  formerly  despised ;  and  that  which  was 
seen  in  him  had  no  beauty.  iniDnJI  Rashi  explains  'and  can 
we  desire  him  1 '  but  had  Isaiah  intended  this  he  would  have 
written  imr:n31 :  imonj  must  mean  the  most  desirable  or  lovely 
part  of  his  body,  which  in  Israel  was  disfigured  and  had  no 
comeliness;  as  men  say  of  a  person  who  is  plain,  The  most  beau- 
tiful part  of  this  man  is  ugly''.  ^£fe  was  despised,  and  we 
esteemed  him  not ;  so  speak  the  kings  concerning  Israel,  because 
he  was  a  man  of  ptO'ins,  and  broken  by  sickness  (cf.  JJ1V1  Judg. 
viii.  16),  and  because  he  was  as  one  hiding  his  face  from  us,  by 
which  is  meant  that  he  was  ashamed  of  his  depressed  condition. 
Yet  we  esteemed  him  smitten  of  God — we  were  thinking  that 
all  these  chastenings  had  fallen  upon  him  because  of  his  own 
iniquity.  *Ijut  he  carried  our  sickness  :  now  we  see  that  that  was 
not  the  cause  :  the  sickness  which  ought  to  have  come  upon  us, 

''  He  treats  '2  as  a  ptcp.  Nif'al  with  suffix. 


-liii.  lo.]  H.  YOSEPH    BEN    NATHAN.  73 

came  upon  him,  and  through  them  atonement  was  made  for  us  : 
''his  chasteuings  were  for  our  transgressions,  and  they  resulted  in 
our  peace ;  the  Holy  One  did  not,  as  he  would  otiierwise  have  done, 
destroy  the  world  for  our  iniquities.  And  while  Israel  was  beaten 
and  killed  (as  it  is  written,  Ps.  xliv.  23)  for  God's  holy  name, 
we  were  healed  by  his  strides.  ®  But  now  we  know  that  all  we 
like  sheep  had  gone  astray,  and  that  the  Lord  let  himself  be 
entreated  and  propitiated  by  him  for  our  iniquities  ;  in  my 
opinion,  however,  jJ^JSn  is  caused  to  meet  upon  him.  ''He  was 
oppressed  (as  Deut.  xv.  3,  by  injurious  language  :  surparJer  in 
Fi-ench),  yet  in  the  gate,  the  place  where  the  principal  people  sat 
(Ruth  iv.  i),  he  opened  not  his  mouth;  and  Israel  among  the 
Gentiles  was  like  a  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter,  or  a  lamb  dumb 
before  her  shearers.  ^  From  confinement — from  the  place  in 
which  he  was  confined  by  their  hands,  and  from  the  chastening 
jiidgment  which  he  had  endured  till  now,  he  was  removed 
(though  my  own  view  is  that  the  words  mean  '  he  was  taken 
from  sovereignty,  the  rights  of  office  ; '  cf.  i  Sam.  ix.  1 7) ;  and 
his  generation — the  long  years  during  which  weariness  and 
travail  befel  him — tvho  can  declare  ?  Or  (as  I  prefer),  '  Who 
would  think  for  how  many  generations  the  kingdom  was  taken 
fi'om  him  V  for  he  vms  cut  o^and  exiled  from  the  land  of  life, 
i.  e.  the  land  of  Israel,  because /or  the  transgression  of  my  people 
this  stroke  was  ujwn  the  just  amongst  them.  ®  He  made  his 
grave  at  the  will  of  the  vncked,  gave  himself  up  to  be  buried  at 
their  decree,  when  the  vilest  of  the  people  murdered  him,  because 
of  God's  holy  name ;  and  at  the  will  of  the  rich  in  his  death, 
inasmuch  as  the  princes  who  bore  rule  over  Israel  ravished 
and  murdered  them.  And  all  this  was  because  he  had  done 
no  violence  against  the  nations  in  the  midst  of  whom  he  was 
a  sojourner  (or,  as  I  think,  '  because  he  had  not  sinned,'  DDPl 
as  Prov.  viii.  36) ;  and  because  there  was  710  guile  in  his  mouth, 
he  was  slain,  because,  namely,  he  would  not  consent  to  deny  the 
Holy  One.  '''  Yet  the  Holy  One  mas  pleased  to  chasten  him, 
he  therefore  made  him  to  be  sick  ;  still  if  his  soul  makes  itself  a 


74  R.  YOSEPH    BEN   NATHAN.  [liii.  n,  12. 

trespass-offering,  if  it  is  given  to  me  for  the  sanctification  of  my 
name — DC'N  is  a  penalty  or  fine,  as  i  Sam.  vi.  3,  8 — then  I  too 
will  i^ay  him  his  reward  :  he  shall  see  seed  and  lenytloen  days, 
and  the  -pleasure  of  the  Lord  sliall  prosper  in  his  hand,  so  that 
for  having  performed  well  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord,  he  will 
receive  for  all  his  toil  a  full  return.  "  He  did  not  plunder  and 
rob,  but  ate  and  was  filled  from  the  labour  of  his  own  soul :  ayid 
hy  his  knowledge  he  justified  the  just,  meted  out  righteous 
judgment  to  all  who  came  before  him,  and  bare  their  iniquities 
(compare  Num.  xviii.  i).  ^^  Therefore,  because  of  his  doing 
this,  /  will  divide  him  a  j)ortion  or  inheritance  with  the  great 
(i.  e.  with  the  patriarchs),  because  he  poured  out  (Gen.  xxiv.  20) 
his  soul  to  die,  and  was  numbered  with  the  transgressors,  bore 
chastenings  as  though  he  had  been  a  sinner  and  transgressor 
himself,  and  made  intercession  for  them  :  for,  in  consequence  of 
these  chahteuings,  there  came  through  his  instrumentality  pros- 
perity for  the  world. 


XIX.      R.  Y'SHA'YAH    BEN    MALI. 

LII.  ^^  Then  (njn)  Israel  sliall  prosper  (^''DJ:'^  as  i  Sam. 
xviii.  14)  :  ^*as  many  were  at  first  astonished  at  thee,  amazed  at 
the  magnitude  of  thy  depression,  and  as  the  countenance  of 
Israel  was  marred  beyond  man,  etc.  The  hireq  in  rintJ*0  is  in 
place  of  shureq  :  for  all  the  vowels  are  interchangeable.  And  his 
form  beyond  the  sotis  of  men  :  his  form  was  altered  from  what 
it  ought  to  have  been  :  1l?<ri  is  pointed  as  the  gutturals  usually 
are;  V.V12  (as  though  for  1?iyD),  Is.  i.  31,  is  similar.  ^^  So  now 
will  he  shew  himself  mighty,  and  sprinkle  many  iiations,  i.  e. 
expel  and  scatter  them  from  his  land,  like  a  man  sprinkling 
water,  without  one  drop  touching  another.  At  him  kings  will 
close  tJieir  mouth  ;  they  will  have  no  pretext  for  speaking  :  for  as 
it  had  never  been  told  them  by  the  prophets  of  their  gi-eatness 
have  they  now  seen,  and  what  they  had  not  heard  from  any  man, 
have  they  perceived  and  spoken  of  to  one  another. 

LIII.  ^  Who  believed  our  report — the  report  which  Ave 
were  hearing  about  Israel,  that  he  would  be  exalted  and  shew 
himself  mighty  over  all  1  And  upon  tvhom  hath  the  arm  of  tlm 
Lord  been  revealed,  to  do  wonders  and  signs  for  tlicm  as  he  has 
done  for  Israel  ?  '^For  Israel  came  up  like  a  sucker  before  him  : 
like  a  young  shoot  which  at  first  is  not  seen  or  noticed,  but  after 
a  little  time  appears  as  a  great  tree ;  and  like  a  root  standing 
in  tlie  dry  earth,  which  men  think  to  be  withered  and  to  have  no 
hope  (Job  xiv.  7),  but  which  at  length  shoots  up  and  bears 
clustei's  of  boughs  and  branches ;  so  Israel,  depressed  during  their 
captivity,  are  now  exalted  above  all.     At  first  he  had  no  form 


76  R.  y'sHa'yAH   ben   MALI.  [liii.  3- 

and  no  comeliness,  and  we  looked  at  him,  but  there  was  no 
beauty  that  we  should  desire  it,  and  exclaim,  How  lovely  the 
beauty  of  this  Jew  !  ^  Jle  was  despised  and  forlorn  of  men,  for 
every  one  withdrew  from  him,  and  hid  his  face  so  as  not  to  look 
at  him  :  he  was  despised,  and  toe  esteemed  him  for  nothing.  *But 
it  was  our  sicknesses  wliich  he  bare,  and  which  made  him  sick 
and  pained  him  ;  and  this  was  the  reason  why  he  had  no  beauty. 
Tet  we  esteemed  him  stricken  of  God,  thought  that  it  had  been 
his  pleasure  for  him  thus  to  be  afflicted :  "hut  he  was  wounded 
in  our  transgressions,  it  was  reckoned  a  great  transgression  on 
our  part  by  the  Creator  when  we  were  the  occasion  of  his 
wounds :  he  loas  bruised  in  our  iniquities,  for  when^^we  bruised 
him,  our  act  was  counted  an  '  iniquity  for  the  judge'  (Job 
xxxi.  28)  :  5<3"no  is  the  same  as  ^^11^,  the  qames  being  in  place 
of  sere,  as  in  T^3^  (Ps.  cxii.  2)  :  our  peace  was  removed  and  taken 
away  [from  11D]  from  off  him — we  gave  him  no  rest ;  and  in 
his  stripes  we  were  healed — as  we  inflicted  upon  him  injuries  and 
blows,  it  seemed  to  us  as  though  we  had  ourselves  been  healed, 
so  greatly  did  we  rejoice  at  his  calamity.  mi3n  is  like  minn, 
except  that  the  aspirate  is  rafe.  ^All  we  like  sheep  had  gone 
astray,  each  after  his  o%vn  way,  and  there  was  none  to  hold 
us  back  :  hut  the  Lord  caused  the  iniquity  of  us  all — we  all  had 
incuiTcd  penalties  because  of  him — to  meet  upon  him  (yjQ  as 
Gen.  xxviii.  11).  ^^3yJ  xmi  C'ja ;  as  though  it  had  been  l^♦W 
Nin  njyil  :  njyj  is  Nif'al,  the  fern,  occurs  Iviii.  10.  ^  From 
sovereignty  (cf.  iVy  i  Sam.  ix.  17)  and  judgment  he  was  taken 
away,  for  his  ancestors  had  been  sovereigns  and  judges  :  and  the 
greatness  of  his  generation  who  cotdd  tell  (nnity  as  Ps.  cxliii.  5)  ? 
for  he  was  cut  off  (cf.  "1T13?  Ps.  cxxxvi.  13)  out  of  the  land  of  the 
living,  and  because  of  the  transgression  of  my  people  loas  this 
stroke  upon  them^.     ^ And  he  made  his  grave  with,  or  like, -^Z^e 


"  Some  explain  this  as  follows  : — Because  of  the  trannrire^sion  of  my  people, 
i.  e.  the  sufferings  they  inflicted  on  him,  the  stroke  was  to  come  upon  them. 
[Inserted  from  another  MS.] 


-liii.  12.]  R.  y'shaWaii  ben  malt,  77 

tvicked,  and  with  the  rich  in  his  death — the  rich  in  Israel  used  to 
kill  them  and  seize  their  wealth,  becatise  he  had  dotie  us  no 
violence,  and  no  deceit  was  found  in  his  rnouth.  ^°  But  the  Lord 
was  pleased  to  bruise  and  sicken  him,  and  therefore  delivered  him 
over  into  the  power  of  the  Gentiles ;  and  so  the  prophet  says, 
If  his  soul  makes  a  trespass-offering,  if  it  confesses  and  says, 
I  have  sinned,  and  because  of  my  iniquities  have  all  these  things 
happened  to  me,  then  he  will  see  seed  and  prolong  his  days,  and 
the  pleasure  of  the  Lord  will  pi-osper  in  his  hand.  '^^For  tlie 
labour  that  he  underwent  in  exile,  he  shall  see  plentiful  pros- 
perity, and  be  satisfied,  and  I  will  give  him  dominion  over  many 
nations,  so  that  by  his  knotuledge  he  may  justify  the  just ;  and 
their  iniquities  he  will  correct — the  word  73D  being  used,  as 
I  Kings  xi.  28^,  of  the  duty  devolving  upon  a  king  of  correcting 
and  putting  straight  whatever  is  crooked.  ^"^  Therefore  will 
I  divide  him  a  portion  among  many  nations,  who  will  all  be 
subject  to  him,  and  mighty  kings  lie  will  divide  for  himself 
as  spoil,  because  in  his  captivity  he  poured  out  his  soul  (Ps. 
cxli.  8)  to  die,  refusing  to  deny  the  Creator,  and  was  punished 
like  the  transgressors.  But  he,  when  he  was  in  his  own  land  and 
by  his  own  sanctuary,  carried  the  sin  of  many,  and  prayed 
to  the  Creator  for  transgressors — for  the  Jews  used  to  pray 
for  all  men,  that  the  Creator  would  have  mercy  on  his  own 
world,  and  would  not  destroy  it;  nevertheless  in  exile,  he 
was  numbered  with  the  transgi'essors  and  was  smitten  in  the 
same  manner  as  they  were. 

''  The  passage  is  cited  incorrectly,  being  confused  with  2  Sam.  xix.  21. 


XX.     R.    MOSriEH     BEN    NAHMAN. 

niy  7''3tJ'''  n^n.  The  right  view  respecting  tliis  Parashah 
is  to  suppose  that  by  the  phrase  '  my  servant'  the  whole  of  Israel 
is  meant,  as  in  xliv.  2,  xlix.  3,  and  often.  As  a  diflPerent  opinion, 
however,  is  adoi)ted  by  the  Midrash,  which  refers  it  to  the  Messiah, 
it  is  necessary  for  us  to  explain  it  in  conformity  with  the  view 
there  maintained.  The  prophet  says,  The  Messiah,  the  son  of 
David,  of  whom  the  text  speaks,  will  never  be  conquered  or 
perish  by  the  hands  of  his  enemies.  And,  in  fact,  the  text 
teaches  this  clearly. 

Interpretation. 
LII.  "^^ Behold  my  servant  shall  understand.  For,  at  the  time 
of  redemption  the  Messiah  will  perceive  and  understand  the  end, 
and  know  when  the  period  for  his  coming  is  at  hand,  and 
the  time  has  arrived  for  him  to  reveal  himself  to  the  congrega- 
tion of  those  that  are  waiting  for  him.  ^'2'^'^  is  used  in  the 
same  sense  as  by  Daniel,  xii.  9  f.,  where  the  meaning  is  that 
there  will  be  some  among  the  wicked  who  will  display  their 
wickedness  by  '  reproaching  the  footsteps  of  the  Messiah'  (Ps. 
Ixxxix.  52)  on  account  of  his  long  tarrying,  and  by  refusing 
to  believe  in  him  at  all ;  thus  they  will  not  perceive  the 
end,  l)ut  will  go  astray  after  any  one  who  may  claim  to  be 
the  Messiah :  '  those  that  understand,'  on  the  other  hand, 
*  will  be  attentive '  for  the  true  end,  and  look  for  it  expectantly. 
In  agreement  with  the  words  of  Daniel,  Isaiah  says  the  Messiah, 
the  servant  of  the  Lord,   will  xmderstand  :    he  will  perceive 


Hi.  13.]  R.  MOSHEH    BEN    NAHMAN.  79 

the  end,  and  forthwith  will  rise  up  and  be  exalted,  and  his 
heart  will  be  '  lofty  in  the  ways  of  the  Lord'  (2  Chron.  xvii.  6)  to 
go  and  gather  together  the  outcasts  of  Israel,  '  not  by  strength 
and  not  by  might,  but  by  his  spii'it'  (Zech.  iv.  6),  trusting  in  the 
Lord,  after  the  manner  of  that  fii'st  redeemer  who  came  to 
Pharaoh  with  his  staff  and  scrip  (cf.  i  Sam.  xvii.  40),  and  smote 
his  land  with  the  'rod  of  his  mouth'  (Is.  xi.  4).  And  so  it 
is  said  in  the  Midrash,  '  He  will  be  higher  than  Abraham,  more 
exalted  than  Moses,  and  loftier  than  the  ministering  angels ; ' 
the  Messiah,  that  is,  will  be  higher  than  Abraham,  who  was  an 
expounder  of  the  belief  in  God,  and,  in  spite  of  the  opposition 
of  the  king,  gained  proselytes  in  the  land  of  Nimrod  :  for  the 
^Messiah  wnll  do  more  than  he  did ;  he  will  proselytize  many 
nations.  And  he  will  be  moi'e  exalted  than  Moses  :  Moses  went 
in  unto  Pharaoh,  that  great  and  wicked  king,  who  said,  I  know 
not  the  Lord  (Ex.  v.  2),  and,  although  only  a  shephei'd  and  the 
humblest  of  men,  was  not  afraid  of  him,  but  brought  forth  his 
people  out  of  the  'furnace  of  ii'on'  (Deut.  iv.  20,  Jer.  xi.  4). 
But  the  Messiah  will  do  more  than  Moses  :  for  he  will  stir 
himself  up  against  the  kings  of  the  whole  world,  so  as  to  bring 
forth  Israel  from  their  hands,  and  to  execute  vengeance  upon 
the  Gentiles.  And  he  will  be  loftier  than  the  ministering  angels, 
for  although  these  exert  themselves  diligently  in  the  redemption 
of  Israel  (like  Michael,  Dan.  x.  20,  21),  yet  the  Messiah  will 
achieve  more  than  the  whole  of  them  together.  And  ^visdora 
will  accompany  this  elevation  of  the  Messiah,  and  his  nearness 
to  God  :  for  neither  Abraham,  whom  the  glorious  and  fearful 
Name  speaks  of  as  his  friend  (Is.  xli.  8),  and  with  whom  also  he 
made  a  covenant ;  nor  Moses,  who  was  nearer  to  the  Deity  than 
any  man ;  nor  the  ministering  angels,  who  '  stand  round  about 
him  on  his  right  hand  and  on  his  left'  (i  Kings  xxii.  19), 
approach  so  closely  to  the  knowledge  of  the  Almighty  as  the 
Messiah ;  for  of  him  it  is  written  that  he  '  came  to  the  Ancient 
of  days,'  and  that  they  'brought  him  near  before  him'  (Dan. 
vii.  1 3),  but  of  the  angels  it  is  only  said  that  '  ten  thousand 


80  R.  MOSHEH    BEN   NAHMAN.  [Hi.   14- 

times  ten  thousand  stood  before  him.''  And  hence  Isaiah  writes 
that  he  rvill  be  high  in  the  understanding  enabling  him  to  com- 
prehend the  Deity,  and  exalted  and  lofty  in  the  knowledge  of  his 
blessed  name,  more  than  all  who  were  born  before  him :  though  to 
be  'greater  than  the  angels'  is  said  also  of  others,  besides  the 
Messiah,  who  are  righteous.  "The  text  continues,  referring  still 
to  the  Messiah,  As  many  were  astonislied  at  tJiee.  Their  astonish- 
ment was  shewn  by  mocking  him  when  he  first  arrived,  and 
by  asking  how  one  '  desjiised,'  '  meek  and  riding  upon  an  ass' 
(Zech.  ix.  9),  could  conquer  all  the  kings  of  the  world  who  had 
laid  hold  upon  Israel,  and  rescue  him  from  their  hand :  so 
acted  Pharaoh  towards  Moses,  when  he  mocked  him,  as  he  says 
(Ex.  vi.  12),  '  How  will  Pharaoh  listen  to  me  ?'  ^^  As  they  said, 
The  visage  of  this  man  is  maiTed,  so  they  will  say  now  that  his 
speech  will  drop  (nf)  upon  them,  and  they  will  open  their  mouth 
wide  for  the  rain  of  his  word  (Job  xxix.  22,  23).  The  kings 
will  close  their  mouths,  and  even  in  the  chamber  of  their  heart 
(Ezek.  viii.  12)  will  be  afraid  to  speak  of  him,  saying  each  to  his 
neighbour,  Even  in  thy  thought  curse  not  a  king  (Qoh.  x.  20). 

LIII.  ^  When  the  report  of  the  lEessiah  comes  among  the 
people,  ivho  is  there  among  them  that  will  believe  it  ?  The  arm 
is  that  which  he  will  cause  to  journey  at  the  right  hand  of  the 
Redeemer,  just  as  it  is  said  that  he '  caused  the  arm  of  his  majesty 
to  journey  at  the  right  hand  of  Moses'  (Is.  Ixiii.  1 2).  Upon  whom 
has  this  arm  been  revealed  so  that  he  might  believe  in  him  1 
'^For  at  the  beginning  he  was  like  a  small  tree  springing  up 
out  of  the  dry  earth,  which  never  grows  great  enough  to  put 
forth  boughs  and  to  bear  fruit :  he  was  desjnsed,  for  he  had  no 
army  and  no  people,  but  was  '  meek  and  riding  upon  an  ass,* 
like  the  first  redeemer  Moses,  our  master,  when  he  entered  into 
Egypt  with  his  wife  and  children  upon  an  ass  (Ex.  iv.  20).  '  He 
was  pained  for  the  iniquities  of  Israel,  which  occasion  his 
tarrying,  and  hold  him  back  from  becoming  king  over  his 
people ;  and  known  to  sickness,  because  a  man  who  is  sick 
is  continually  distressed  with  pain,     "'^in  is  here  used  of  the 


-liii.  7.]  R.  MOSIIEir    BEN   NAHMAN.  81 

distress  produced  by  excessive  love,  as  i  Sam.  xxii.  8,  2  Sam. 
xiii.  2 ;  or  it  may  mean,  perhaps,  that  he  will  really,  as  is 
sometimes  the  case  with  men,  be  made  sick  by  his  distress. 
*  Yet  fie  carried  our  sicknesses,  being  himself  sick  and  distressed 
for  the  transgressions  which  should  have  caused  sickness  and 
distress  in  us,  and  bearing  the  pains  which  we  ought  to  have 
experienced.  But  tve,  when  we  saw  him  weakened  and  prostrate, 
thought  that  he  was  stricken,  smitten  of  God.  ^  77T\C ;  from  7?in 
as  Ps.  xxix.  9.  The  chastisement  of  our  jjeace  was  uj)07i  him — 
for  God  will  correct  him;  and  hy  his  stripes  we  were  healed — ■ 
because  the  stripes  by  which  he  is  vexed  and  distressed  will 
heal  us  :  God  will  pardon  us  for  his  righteousness,  and  we  shall 
be  healed  both  from  our  own  transgressions  and  from  the 
iniquities  of  our  fathers.  NQ"i  as  vi.  10,  Ivii.  19  :  the  metaphor 
of  healing  is  often  used  with  reference  to  redemption,  ef.  Jer. 
XXX.  13.  ^ All  we  like  sheep  had  gone  astray  :  he  charges  Israel 
with  guilt,  because  during  their  exile  they  apply  all  their 
attention  to  the  business  of  this  world,  and  every  one  devotes 
himself  to  the  interests  of  himself  and  of  his  own  household, 
when  they  ought  rather  to  be  weeping  and  praying  before 
God  night  and  day  that  he  would  pardon  the  iniquity  of  Israel, 
and  speed  the  time  that  is  to  bring  deliverance :  for  with 
repentance  the  Messiah  will  come  at  once,  but  without  it  he  will 
delay  until  the  end  arrives,  in  accordance  with  the  oath  (Dan. 
xii.  7).  And  the  Lord  laid  upon  him  tlie  iniquity  of  us  all — it 
lights  upon  him,  because  he  is  continually  distressed  that  the 
wheels  of  his  chariots  tarry  (Judg.  v.  28)  :  we,  however,  pay 
no  attention,  but  abandon  ourselves  to  our  own  concerns  in 
the  midst  of  the  Gentiles.  "^  He  luas  oppressed  and  lie  ivas 
afflicted :  for  when  he  first  comes,  '  meek  and  riding  upon  an 
ass,'  the  oppressors  and  officers  of  every  city  will  come  to  him, 
and  afflict  him  with  revilings  and  insults,  reproaching  both  liim 
and  the  God  in  whose  name  he  appears,  like  Moses  our  master, 
who,  when  Pharaoh  said,  I  know  not  the  Lord,  answered  him  not, 
neither  said,  The  God  of  heaven  and  earth,  who  will  destroy  thee 

G 


82  R.  MOSHEH    BEN    NAHMAN.  [liii.  8- 

quickly,  etc.,  but  kept  silence.  So  will  the  Messiah  give  no  answer, 
but  keep  silence,  and  cease  not  to  entreat  for  Israel,  saying  to 
all  tlie  kings  of  the  nations,  '  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  let  my  people 
go  that  they  may  serve  me.'  But  he,  like  a  sJieep  led  to  the 
slaughter,  will  think  in  his  heart,  Even  though  they  slay  me, 
I  will  perform  the  mission  of  my  Creator,  as  it  is  my  duty  to  do ; 
BO  said  and  did  Ananias,  Mishael,  and  Azariah  (Dan.  iii.  i8) ;  and 
in  the  same  way  our  Rabbis  say, '  Whoso  gives  himself  up  to  die, 
trusting  that  a  sign  will  be  wrought  for  him,  there  is  no  sign 
wrought  for  that  man.'  Jeremiah  speaks  similarly  of  himself 
(xi.  19),  and  also  the  singer  Asaph  (Ps.  Ixxiii.  14,  cf.  Ixxxviii.  6). 
^  He  will  think  himself  taken  away  from  ruling  over  his  people, 
and  from  being  a  prince  and  judge  over  them,  and  will  wonder 
who  there  will  be  to  declare  to  his  generation  the  ways  of  the 
Lord,  and  announce  that  he  has  been  cut  ofiE"  out  of  the  land  of 
the  living  for  the  transgression  of  his  people, — an  event  which 
will  be  a  severe  bloio  to  them.  The  passage  says  in  his  praise 
that  he  will  not  grieve  about  his  own  life,  but  only  for  the  loss 
Israel  will  sustain  by  his  death.  °|n3  is  used  of  thinking 
generally,  as  Qoh.  i.  13,  i  Sam.  i.  16,  and  of  speaking,  as  Lev. 
xvi.  21,  Deut.  xi.  29.  The  prophet  says,  He  will  think  in  his 
heart  that  his  grave  will  be  %uith  the  wicked  among  the  Gentiles, 
for  he  will  say,  They  will  assui'cdly  Idll  me,  and  in  this  place 
will  be  my  tomb,  ^"i^p  does  not  refer  to  the  grave  in  which 
he  was  actually  buried,  but  only  the  grave  in  which  he 
expected  to  bo  buried :  so  Is.  xxii.  1 6,  Gen.  1.  5  (where  Jacob 
speaks  of  his  grave,  though  he  was  not  buried  in  it  yet).  Further, 
the  wealthy  Israelites,  who  take  no  pleasure  in  him,  will  give  him 
many  forms  of  death,  for  he  will  expect  them  to  slay  him  by 
stoning,  or  burning,  or  murder,  or  banging,  like  those  who 
perished  dui-ing  the  three  days'  darkness  in  Egypt.  And  this  is 
the  reason  why  vniO,  deaths,  is  plural.  Yet  he  did  no  violence, 
viz.  to  the  wicked  who  are  mentioned,  i.  e.  to  the  Gentiles,  for 
he  never  attempted  to  rob  them  of  anything  that  belonged  to 
them ;  neither  was  there  any  deceit  in  his  moxith  towards  the 


-liii.  12.]  R,  MOSHEn   BEN   NARMAN.  83 

wealthy  Israelites.  ^^  But  the  Lord  was  pleased  to  give  him 
happiuess  through  the  distress  which  he  endured,  bo  that  reeog- 
nising  in  himself  the  presence  of  guilt  and  sin,  his  soul  might 
make  a  trespass-offering;  but  his  merit  was  imperfect,  and 
so  all  this  befel  him  in  order  that  it  might  become  complete. 
D''B'n  DJ<  are  the  words  of  God,  and  express  his  wish  :  '  If  he  will 
only  bear  all  this,  and  humble  himself,  so  as  not  to  be  conten- 
tious, and  reason  concerning  my  attributes  !  I  will  then  give 
him  his  reward,  measure  for  measure,  that  he  may  see  seed,^ 
etc.  DN  is  used,  as  Jer.  xv.  19,  in  the  sense  of  0  that  .  .  .  lie 
shall  see  seed :  in  him  will  be  fulfilled  the  promise,  Ps.  xlv.  17. 
He  shall  lengthen  days,  viz.  for  ever  and  ever,  as  it  is  written 
(Ps.  xxi.  5),  'Length  of  days  for  ever  and  ever;'  and  so  it  is 
said  in  the  Pirqe  of  Rabbi  Eliezer,  'As  it  is  written  (Ps.  Ixi.  7), 
His  yeai's  shall  be  as  many  generations.'  And  the  2^leasure  of 
the  Lord  shall  prosper  in  his  hand  :  because  he  will  accomplish 
the  Redemption  in  which  the  Lord  finds  his  pleasure,  and  will 
teach  all  the  Gentiles  to  '  understand  and  know'  the  Lord  :  this 
is  what  is  meant  by  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord,  as  it  is  written, 
'In  these  is  my  pleasure'  (Jer.  ix.  23  [24  Eng.]).  '^^ Because  of 
the  labour  which  he  saiv  (experienced)  in  himself,  and  because  he 
was  satisfied  with  'shame  instead  of  gloiy'  (Hab.  ii.  16),  there- 
fore by  his  knowledge  he  will  justify  the  just,  he  will  know  and 
recognise  who  are  the  just  that  ought  to  be  redeemed ;  and  so 
in  all  his  judgments  he  will  find  out  the  just,  as  it  is  written, 
He  will  not  judge  by  the  sight  of  the  eyes,  etc.  (Is.  xi.  3,  4,  etc.) ; 
and  our  iniquities,  i.  e.  those  of  the  many  who  are  mentioned, 
he  ivill  set  in  order,  viz.  by  disposing  them  to  repentance  : 
cf.  I  Kings  xi.  28,  where  ^3D  is  equivalent  to  the  disposition  or 
arrangement  of  affairs  (Ex.  v.  4).  ^-  Therefore  I  will  divide  him 
a  portion  vjith  the  many :  because  '  the  whole  of  many  nations* 
(Ps.  Ixxxix.  51)  will  be  his  jiortion  and  inheritance,  and  from 
among  the  Gentiles  he  will  divide  the  strong  as  spoil  for  hia 
people  and  servants,  because  he  empAied  his  soid  of  everjthing 
for  death,  i.  e.  he  resolved  in  his  miud  and  resigned  himself  to 

G  2 


84  n.  MOSHEH   BEN   NAHMAN.  [liii.  12. 

die.  my  as  Ps.  cxli.  8,  '  Do  not  pour  out  my  soul/  i.  e.  Empty 
it  not  of  its  liope  which  it  longs  to  see  realised :  the  accom- 
plishment of  one's  pleasure  is  spoken  of  as  a  filling  of  the  soul 
(Ex.  XV.  9),  and  similarly  the  frustration  of  a  desire  is  called  its 
emptying.  The  prophet  continues  :  And  because  he  was  num- 
bered ivith  tlie  transgrcssoi's,  expected,  as  I  have  stated,  to  be 
reckoned  amongst  them,  and  carried  the  sin  of  many — what 
happened  to  liira  at  that  time  was  not  for  his  own  sins,  but  for 
the  sins  of  others — and  for  transgressors  y''JQ\  i.  e.  (according  to 
what  is  said  above,  ver.  6)  allowed  the  iniquity  of  sinners 
and  transgressors  to  light  upon  himself.  There  is,  however, 
no  mention  made  in  the  Parashah  that  the  Messiah  would  be 
delivered  into  the  hands  of  those  who  hated  him,  or  that  he 
would  be  slain,  or  hung  upon  a  tree ;  but  that  he  should  see 
seed  and  have  long  life,  and  that  his  kingdom  should  be  high 
and  exalted  among  the  nations,  and  that  mighty  kings  should  be 
to  him  for  spoil. 

Extract  from  the  'Refutation.^ 

Friar  Paul  said,  Behold  their  wise  men  say  that  the  Messiah 
will  be  more  glorious  than  all  the  angels  :  tliis  can  be  realised  in 
none  except  Jesus,  who  is  God  himself,  and  has  fulfilled  what 
is  said  in  the  Haggadah,  *  He  will  be  high  and  exalted,  and  lofty 
exceedingly — higlaer  than  Abraham,  more  exalted  than  Moses, 
and  loftier  than  the  ministering  angels.' 

I  replied.  But  our  wise  men  say  this  constantly  of  the  righteous 
in  general,  affirming  them  to  be  greater  than  the  angels^.  Moses 
our  master  said  to  the  angel.  In  the  place  where  I  dwell,,  thou 
must  not  stand  b:  and  of  Israel  as  a  whole  it  is  said  that 
they  are  'more  beloved  than  the  ministering  angels c.'  The 
author  of  that  Haggadah,  however,  meant  to  say  that  our  father 

»•  Thalmud  of  Babylon,  Sanhedrin,  fol.  93". 

''  Midrash,  P'tirath  Moshch  (decease  of  Moses),  according  to  the  Talqut, 
on  Pent.  §  940. 

=  Thalmud  of  Babylon,  Holin,  fol.  9l'>. 


liii.  12.]  R.  MOSHEH    BEN    NAHMAN.  85 

Abraham  gained  many  proselytea  and  expounded  to  the  Gentiles 
the  belief  in  the  Holy  One,  and  disputed  with  Nimrod  and 
feared  him  not.  And  Moses  did  more  than  Abraham :  in  his 
humiliation  he  stood  in  the  presence  of  the  great  and  wicked 
king  Pharaoh,  and  shewed  him  no  favour,  but  smote  him  with 
great  plagues,  and  brought  forth  Israel  out  of  his  hands.  And 
the  angels  are  more  actively  engaged  in  the  work  of  redemption 
than  Moses,  according  to  what  is  said  of  Michael,  Dan.  x.  20,  21. 
But  the  Messiah  will  do  more  than  all  of  them  :  '  his  heart  will 
be  lofty  in  the  ways  of  the  Lord'  (2  Chron.  xvii.  6),  and  he  will 
enter  in  and  lay  his  commands  upon  the  Pope  and  all  the  kings 
of  the  nations  in  the  name  of  God,  saying,  Let  my  people  go 
that  they  may  serve  me ;  not  fearing  them,  but  performing  in 
their  midst  great  and  destructive  signs  and  wonders;  he  also 
will  stand  in  their  city,  even  in  Eome,  until  he  lay  it  waste. 
And  if  you  like,  I  will  go  on  and  explain  the  whole  Parasbah. 
He  would  not,  however,  agree. 


XXI.    AHRON   BEN    YOSEPH   (THE   ELDER). 

LII.  "ij^ac'"'  will  he  jjrospej'ous,  as  i  Sam.  xviii.  30.  My  ser- 
vant: some  suppose  that  the  prophet  refers  here  to  Israel 
collectively ;  but  it  is  better  to  apply  the  word  to  those  who 
are  described  in  ver.  1 1  as  '  bearing  the  vessels  of  the  Lord  : ' 
because  the  '  wise '  [p.  61]  suffered  more  severely  in  captivity,  and 
resigned  themselves  to  death  for  the  sake  of  God's  holy  name :  the 
proj^het  addresses  his  consolations  to  the  individual  Israelites 
rather  than  to  the  nation  as  a  whole.  It  is  not  consistent  with 
the  natural  sense  of  the  Parashab  to  refer  it  to  the  Messiah  : 
for  the  Messiah  cannot  be  termed  '  forlorn  of  men.'  NK'J  is  Nifal. 
"  Upon  tltee :  the  prophet  passes  from  the  3rd  to  the  2nd  person. 
So  marred  !  in  mockery  and  contempt :  because  the  form  and 
features  of  Israel  were  disfigured  and  unlike  those  of  other  men. 
nnC'O  is  not  an  abstract  noun  or  a  passive  participle,  as  most 
except  ourselves  are  of  opinion,  but  is  formed  like  T\))^~\)2, 
2  Chron.  xxiv.  7,  as  an  adjective  :  and  llNin  resembles  17V13 
Jer.  xxii.  13,  "^^  So  will  he  sprinkle  (nr)  the  blood  of  many 
nations:  from  amazement  kings  will  close  their  mouths  at  him 
(cf.  Y^pr\  Deut.  XV.  7),  /or  what  was  not  told  them  of  old  tJiey 
see  now  in  the  majesty  of  the  servant  of  the  Lord. 

LIII.  ^  Israel  is  the  speaker :  Who,  if  he  had  heard  it  only 
without  having  seen  it,  would  have  believed  that  the  servant  of 
the  Lord  would  be  thus  exalted  ?  or  have  imagined  on  whom 
the  arm  of  the  Lord  had  been  revealed?  ^VJS?;  this  refers 
back  to  l^KiHT]  '•D,  viz.  who  would  have  believed  he/ore  this  that 
he  would  grow  up  like  a  sucker  ?   others  suppose  it  to  mean 


liii.  3-7.]  AHRON    BEN    YOSEPH    (tHE    ELDER).  87 

before  God,  but  this  is  not  so  natural.  '  Who,'  the  prophet  asks, 
'  could  have  believed  that  a  root  would  spring  up  out  of  the  dry 
earth  1 '  an  allusion  to  God's  delivering  his  servant  from  capti- 
vity, and  bringing  him  to  such  wonderful  majesty  and  honour. 
He  Jmd  no  form,  viz.  previously  to  this  change,  nor  beauty,  iJiat 
we  might  desire  him:  according  to  others,  however,  the  negative 
must  be  understood  twice,  so  that  the  meaning  will  be,  '  and  we 
did  not  desire  him.'  '  He  was  despised  in  consequence  of  the 
temptations  which  beset  him  in  the  world,  and  without  reputa- 
tion in  the  presence  of  men.  7in  is  an  adjective  in  stat.  constr., 
like  Ipn  I  Sam.  xxi.  16.  A  man  of  pains,  because  of  the  ill- 
treatment  of  the  Gentiles,  and  hioion  to  sickness  (yn^  is  in  stat. 
eonstr.),  as  followed  naturally  from  his  life  of  weariness  and  toil : 
the  mass  of  men  would  not  look  upon  him,  because  he  loas  des- 
pised and  loe  esteemed  him  not.  *The  language  of  his  tor- 
mentors :  We  ourselves  were  the  cause  of  his  sickness  and  pain, 
which  his  piety  forced  him  to  endure  :  yet  we  esteemed  him 
smitten  of  God,  thinking  it  was  God  who  had  been  the  cause  of 
it.  ^  77r!0  means  to  be  made  sick.  N3nO  is  not  derived  from  nS'l, 
for  then  it  would  have  been  pointed  fc<310.  The  cJmstisement  of 
our  recompense- — the  chastisement  which  was  our  due — fell  upon 
him :  and  as  we  inflicted  on  him  stripes  and  blows  (iniDns)  it 
became  visible  to  us  that  we  loere  healed.  The  word  iniUPIl 
ought  properly  to  have  Dagesh  in  the  3.  ^As  soon  as  they 
recognise  the  truth,  they  acknowledge  it  openly,  as  in  the  similar 
confession  (Jer.  xvi.  1 9),  '  Our  fathers  have  inherited  falsehood.' 
Others  suppose  the  verse  to  be  spoken  by  the  remnant  of  the 
Israelites  who  had  inclined  after  a  well-known  beliefs,  each 
following  his  own  choice.  yjDn  made  to  meet;  cf.  yJD  Gen. 
xxxii.  2.  }iy  has  here  the  sense  of  penalty,  as  Gen.  iv.  13,  i  Sam. 
xxviii.  10.  ''mi  is  Nifal,  from  the  same  root  as  ti'aw,  'op- 
pressor : '  the  words  '  opened  not  his  mouth '  refer  to  the  '  sheep.' 

»  The  writer  means  the  school  of  the  Rabbanites,  which  he  refrains  from 
mentioning  openly. 


88  AHRON    BEN    YOSEPH   (tHE   ELDER).  [liii.  8- 

*  IViy  is  a  substantive,  for  he  was  confined  in  captivity  :  lie  was 
taken  from  con^uement  to  confinement,  and  from  judijment  to 
judgment  b;  and  who  could  tell  {vnvy  as  Ps.  cxliii.  5)  the  troubles 
which  befel  the  generation  of  those  that  served  and  feared  God  ? 
for  he  was  cut  off  from  the  land  of  life,  i.  e.  the  land  of  Israel, 
from  which  the  nation  was  exiled  ;  and  because  of  their  trans- 
gression did  this  stroke  come  upon  them.  Or  the  words  may  be 
understood  as  follows : — Who  would  speak  of  their  generation 
(by  mentioning  them  in  prayer)  after  they  had  been  cut  off  from 
the  land  of  the  living  1  for  the  stroke  had  befallen  them  and  the 
just  had  been  deprived  of  life,  because  of  their  people's  trans- 
gression. "T/e  made  his  grave  D'^ySi'iri  DN,  i.  c.  in  whatever 
manner  the  worshippers  of  stars  and  constellations  ^  might  con- 
demn any  individual  Israelite.  The  idolaters  are  termed  the 
rich,  because  in  their  hands  Israel  resembled  the  aflSicted  and 
needy  :  VDIO  is  plural,  cf.  Ezek.  xxviii.  8.  Or  the  sense  may  be 
that  they  made  their  grave  like  men  proved  to  be  wicked  by 
trial  and  sentenced  to  death,  and  like  the  rich  man  dying  in 
his  sins.  ^°  But  the  Lord  ioas  ^;?ertsec?  to  bruise  him  (1^?D^  like 
)13y\  Gen.  xxxvii.  4),  in  order  to  increase  his  reward,  and  sick- 
ened him  with  long-continued  sicknesses  (vnn,  without  N,  like 
"•tonn  Jer.  xxxii.  35).  When  (DX  as  Is.  iv.  4)  his  soul  makes  a 
trespass-offering,  by  acknowledging  that  the  chastisements  which 
come  upon  him  are  owing  to  some  guilt,  and  so  justifying  God, 
he  will  see  his  seed,  when  it  prolongs  its  days :  or  the  subject  of 
']nN''  may  be  the  same  as  that  of  HNI''  [he  will  lengthen  days]. 
^'  For  tJie  labour  which  he  imposed  on  himself,  he  will  see 
prosperity,  and  he  satisfied  with  the  pleasantness  of  the  Lord 
(Ph.  xc.  17)  :  and  by  his  knowledge — the  power  to  grant  signs 
for  the  confirmation  of  his  words — he  will  justify  him  that  is 
just.      The  word  '  many '  is  used,  in  order  that  no  one  may 

'•  He  means  to  say,  that  he  was  released  from  one  place  of  pubishment 
only  to  be  transferred  to  another. 

c  A  Rabbinical  expression,  signifying  idolaters. 


-liii.  12.]  AHHON   BEN    YOSEPH    (tHE   ELDER).  89 

suppose  that  he  establishes  his  words  only  to  individuals.  Or 
tho  meaning  may  he  for  many,  those,  viz.  of  whom  it  is  written, 
'  Many  shall  be  made  white,  and  purified  and  tried '  (Dan.  xii. 
lo).  And  tlieir  iniquities  he  will  bear;  for  he  will  lead  them 
in  the  way  that  is  good.  ^^  There/ore  I  will  divide  him  the 
capital  '^  that  is  to  be  his  in  the  world  to  come,  among  tJie  great 
(3"l  as  Jer.  xli.  i),  who  have  died  for  the  unity  of  God;  and 
with  (ns)  the  mighty  Jie  will  divide  spoil,  because  he  poured 
out  (Ps.  cxli.  8)  his  soul  in  the  cause  of  the  Law,  and  was  num- 
bered with  the  transgressors,  i.  e.  was  punished  as  though  he  had 
been  a  transgressor  himself,  whereas  in  fact  he  carried  the  sin  of 
many,  and  made  intercession  for  transgressors. 


d  See  the  extract  from  the  Thalmud,  Zebahim  127  a,  quoted  in  Buxtorf, 
Lex.  s.  V.  pp. 


XXII.    THE   OLDER  NIZZAHON. 


LII.  *^  Tlic  whole  of  this  Parashah  is  interpreted  by  the  heretics 
of  Jesus,  who  was  punished  and  put  to  death  for  their  sake,  and 
so  forth :  but  the  reply  to  all  this  is  not  far  to  seek ;  it  is 
written,  'He  shall  be  high  and  exalted,'  which  implies  that 
Jesus  had  not  been  so  before.  ^''It  is  also  ^vritten  that  'his 
countenance  was  marred  beyond  man,  and  his  form  beyond  the 
sons  of  men  :'  but  if  he  is  God,  why  then  did  his  countenance 
fall  1  and  if  it  be  answered,  Because  they  smote  him  and  because 
of  the  distress  he  endured,  still  if  he  is  God,  how  could  his 
features  on  this  account  have  suffered  disfigurement  1  ^^  If  the 
prophet  had  meant  to  say  that  he  would  gather  many  nations 
to  his  religion,  he  should  have  written  3'^p''  (will  bring  near  or 
attract),  rather  than  nf  (will  sprinkle  or  scatter).  For  tvhat 
was  not  told  them  have  they  seen :  but  do  they  not  affirm  that 
all  the  prophets  prophesied  of  him  ? 

LIII.  '  Upon  whom  %vas  the  arm  of  the  Lord  revealed  ?  see 
then  how  the  work  of  Jesus  had  never  been  revealed  either  to 
the  wise  men  or  to  the  prophets  !  ^  lie  had  no  form,  etc.  Do 
they  not  declare  that  these  words  in  the  45th  Psalm,  'Thou  art 
fairer  than  the  children  of  men,'  refer  to  Jesus,  whereas  here 
the  prophet  says  of  him,  'He  was  despised  and  forlorn  of  men  1' 
And  if  it  be  said  that  during  his  lifetime  he  was  fair,  and  that 
the  words  he  had  no  form  nor  comeliness  refer  to  his  condition 
at  the  time  of  death,  the  reply  is  this,  that  if  he  were  God,  what 
kind  of  death  could  have  affected  him,  and  what  change  in  the 
beauty  of  his  countenance  could  have  happened  to  him  1     '  This 


liii.  4,  S.]  TfTE    OLDER   NIZZAHON.  91 

verse  also  affords  a  refutation  of  the  Christians:  for  every 
one  knows  that  before  Jesus  was  put  to  death  and  hidden  from 
the  eyes  of  creation,  men  esteemed  him  for  nought,  but  that 
afterwards  tlicy  went  astray  and  followed  him,  saying  he  had 
ascended  up  to  heaven  :  here,  however,  the  prophet  says,  If  he 
had  not  hidden  his  face  from  the  children  of  men,  we  should 
have  esteemed  him  not.  *//e  hath  carried  our  sicknesses.  To 
what  does  this  refer  %  If  you  say  that  he  carried  (w  took  away) 
their  iniquity,  was  there  then  no  taking  away  of  sin  before  the 
birth  of  Jesus  ?  yet  Scripture  speaks  of  sins  being  taken  away 
and  forgiven,  as  Ex.  xxxiv.  7,  Num.  xiv.  20,  and,  with  reference 
to  the  offerings,  Lev.  iv.  26.  And  if  you  stUl  say  that  by  this 
forgiveness  they  were  delivered,  not  from  Gehenna,  but  only 
from  [tem2:)oral]  punishments  and  chastenings,  consider  how 
their  punishment  cost  them  their  lives  (Ex.  xxxii.  27  f.),  and 
how  it  is  written, '  And  there  fell  of  the  people  on  that  day  about 
3000  men  : '  it  is  plain,  then,  that  their  forgiveness  did  not  save 
them  from  punishment;  what  object  then  could  it  have  had 
except,  surely,  to  deliver  them  from  Gehenna  1  ^  They  assert 
that  all  his  sufferings  were  for  their  iniquities,  in  order  to 
redeem  them  from  the  judgment  of  Gehenna :  but,  according 
to  their  own  teaching,  there  was  no  necessity  for  him  to  suffer 
upon  this  account,  for  they  say  that  even  those  men  who  are 
free  from  [actual]  transgression  or  iniquity,  go  down  to  Gehenna ; 
it  follows  then  that,  unlike  the  person  here  spoken  of,  Jesus 
cannot  have  been  compelled  to  imdergo  death  for  our  trans- 
gressions, but  rather  in  order  to  annul  the  decree  that  all,  good 
and  bad  alike,  must  go  down  to  Gehenna.  And  if  you  next 
assert  that  he  endured  all  this  because  of  the  iniquities  com- 
mitted by  the  faithful,  for  which  his  death  atoned,  then  none 
of  the  faithful  are  bound  by  the  commandment,  neither  have 
they  any  cause  to  grieve  over  the  commission  of  robbery,  steal- 
ing, murder,  or  adultery,  since  by  his  death  all  crimes  are  already 
atoned  for.  And  thus  his  goodness  becomes  a  mischief  and  a 
curse  to  the  whole  of  creation. 


XXIII.     R.  SHEM  TOBH  BEN   SHAPEUT. 


The  Trinitarian  :  In  this  Parashah  it  is  assorted  that  just 
as  the  exaltation  of  God's  servant  had  been  great,  so  the  humili- 
ation wliich  succeeded  it  was  great  likewise  (lii.  1 3  f.) ;  that  he 
was  to  rule  over  many  nations  (ver.  1 5) ;  that  he  was  despised 
in  the  eyes  of  the  Jews  (liii.  1-3);  that  he  was  God,  smitten 
and  afflicted  (ver.  4) ;  that  by  his  stripes  the  sin  of  Adam  was 
healed  for  us  (ver.  5) ;  that  he  met  death  for  our  sakes  (ver.  6) ; 
that  he  met  it  voluntarily  (ver.  7 ) ;  that  there  was  no  one  who 
knew  his  generation,  i.  e.  his  seed,  and  that  death  came  upon 
him  in  consequence  of  the  transgressions  of  the  people  (ver.  8); 
and  that  he  was  hung  between  two  thieves  (ver.  9).  In  a  word, 
the  whole  passage,  rightly  expounded,  bears  witness  in  every 
line  to  the  history  of  Jesus  our  Messiah  and  to  the  things  that 
befel  him. 

The  Unitarian  :  I  have  five  objections  to  make  against  the 
position  that  this  Parashah  was  spoken  with  reference  to  Jesus : 

1.  You  have  said  that  the  Psalmist  declares  of  him,  'Thou  art 
fairer  than  the  children  of  men'  (xlv.  3),  and  Jeremiah  also  (xi. 
16)  calls  him  a  'flourishing  olive-tree,  beautiful  with  well- 
formed  fruit,'  and  now  you  say  that  he  is  alluded  to  in  the 
words  'so  marred  was  his  countenance,'  and  'despised  and 
forlorn  of  men  :'    these  two  assertions  contradict  each  other. 

2.  'He  shall  be  high  and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceedingly:'  how 
is  this  said  of  God?  was  he  not  hi(jh  and  exalted  from  all 
eternity  (Is.  Ivii.  15)?  And  think  not  to  refute  me  by  the 
words,  'Now  will  I  arise,'  etc.  (Is.  xxxiii.  10):    it  is  plain  that 


Hi,  liii,]  R,  snEM  tobii  ben  shaprut.  93 

the  prophet  there  says  now,  because  it  is  a  custom  of  Scripture 
to  use  such  expressions  of  God  (Ps.  xliv.  24):  but  God  forbid 
that  lie  should  be  spoken  of,  in  any  verse,  as  enfeebled  or  dis- 
figured. 3.  The  prophet  calls  him  a  '  man  of  pains  '  and  'known 
to  sickness;'  but  only  one  on  whom  disease  continually  rests 
is  said  to  be  '  known  to  sickness,'  and  of  Jesus  we  do  not  find 
in  any  of  your  books  that  he  was  *  sick '  except  on  the  day  of 
his  death  alone,  and  there  is  not  any  passage  in  which  death  is 
spoken  of  as  '  sickness.'  4.  He  is  said  to  be  smitten  of  God,  but 
by  your  account  '  smitten  of  men'  would  be  the  right  expression 
to  employ  :  and  again,  how  can  he  be  God  1  for  Scripture  calls 
him  smitten  of  God,  from  which  we  may  see  that  God  is  above 
him  commanding  him  to  be  smitten:  similarly  in  vers.  6,  lo 
he  is  the  j^assive  recipient,  and  God  the  agent  who  causes  ini- 
quity to  rest  upon  him  and  is  pleased  to  bruise  him.  5.  The 
words  '  there  was  a  stroke  upon  them '  ought  by  your  arguments 
to  have  been  '  there  was  a  stroke  upon  him : '  if  again,  as  you 
believe,  the  words  '31  D''B'n  DN  mean  '  when  his  soul  makes  a 
trespass-offering' — DN  being="'3  as  Ex.  xxii.  24 — then,  his  soul 
being  liable  to  such  an  offering,  it  is  plain  that  he  must  have 
sinned.      If   now   to   avoid  this   conclusion  you  say  that  the 

*  trespass-offei'ing '  signified  is  death,  then  the  soul  of  Jesus  died, 
whereas  you  assert  that  the  flesh  alone  died.    Again,  it  is  stated, 

*  He  will  prolong  his  days  : '  but  was  he  not  crucified  when  only 
thirty-two  years  old?  and  if  you  think  that  Isaiah  alludes  to 
his  Deity,  since  this  lives  for  ever  and  ever,  such  a  resource 
is  not  admissible,  because  the  phi-ase  'length  of  days'  is  only 
used  with  reference  to  the  physical  world,  and  is  not  applicable 
to  life  in  the  spiritual  world.  Then  again,  it  is  said,  '  He  shall 
see  seed:'  but  where  is  his  seed?  and  if  you  reply  that  the 
allusion  is  to  his  disciples,  in  that  case  the  prophet  should  have 
written  sons ;  for  the  word  seed  denotes  such  as  are  born  by 
carnal  generation.  It  is  also  derogatory  to  the  Godhead  to  be 
called  servant  throughout  the  passage  :  the  language  in  xliii.  10 
refers  to  Israel. 


94  II.  SHEM   TOBII    BEN    SHAPRUT.  [lii.  13- 

The  compiler  says :  Since  the  Nazarenes  make  a  great 
point  of  this  prophecy  for  their  religion,  bo  much  so  indeed 
that,  in  my  estimation,  it  seems  to  be  founded  upon  it,  it 
is  my  intention  to  be  a  little  diffuse,  and  to  add  four  ob- 
jections of  my  own  :  i.  If  it  alludes  to  Jesus,  how  is  it  that 
Isaiah  says  '  he  will  understand  1 '  from  this  it  is  evident  that 
previously  he  must  have  been  devoid  of  any  such  attribute : 
but  how  can  such  language  be  used  of  God  ?  2-.  If  the  words 
DNn7X  naiJD  mean,  as  you  say,  that  he,  God,  was  smitten,  then 
this  contradicts  the  teaching  of  your  own  religion  :  for  you 
assert  that  only  his  flesh  suffered.  3,  How  can  God  in  any 
sense  be  said  to  be  smitten?  4.  The  expressions  in  liii.  11,  12 
imply  plainly  that  his  soul  endured  labour  and  death  :  this  also 
contradicts  what  is  taught  by  your  own  religion,  viz,  that  only 
his  flesh  underwent  death. 

It  is  evident  that  the  whole  Parashah  has  reference  to  Israel, 
■who  were  smitten  and  afflicted  by  the  hands  of  the  Gentiles, 
and  who  are  called  'my  servant,'  Jer.  xxx.  10,  and  by  Isaiah 
himself,  xliv.  21  and  often. 

LII.  "  In  spite  of  Israel's  being  now  a  people  '  foolish '  (Jer. 
V.  2 1 )  and  despised,  a  time  will  arrive  when  they  will  rise  to 
great  dignity,  and  he  jjrosperous  (i'"'3ti'''  as  i  Sam.  xviii.  14). 
^*  As  till  now  the  nations  had  told  of  Israel's  shame,  and  as 
they  had  been  marred  in  countenance,  and  ill-favoured  in  form, 
80  henceforth  they  will  have  dominion  over  their  enemies,  and 
many  kings — and  a  fortiori  the  rest  of  the  people — will  declare 
their  dignity  and  honour. 

LIII.  "Their  appearance,  when  returning  from  exile  with 
disfigured  countenances,  is  compared  to  that  of  a  young  plant 
which,  as  it  first  shoots  up,  is  without  form  or  beauty :  yet,  in 
spite  of  this,  the  Gentiles  will  in  the  future  desii'c  them,  and  say 
to  one  another  in  amazement,  This  is  the  people  which  bare  the 
yoke  of  exile  !  "  "We  thought  that  he  was  despised  and  forlorn 
of  men,  etc.  The  reference  is  here  to  the  depression  of  Isi'ael 
among  the  Gentiles,  and  to  the  manner  in  which  the  latter 


-liii.  8,]  R.  SHEM   TOBH    BEN   SHAPRUT.  95 

thought  of  him  as  a  man  of  2>ciins,  and  knoum  to  sickness, 
saying  that  they  were  liable  to  a  well-known  complaint,  viz. 
emerotls"^,  as  has  been  already  mentioned  above,  III.  lo  ;  at  their 
ignoble  and  loathsome  appearance  we,  as  it  were,  hid  our  faces. 
*They  thought  also  that  the  only  object  of  Israel's  existence 
was,  as  Mohammed  said,  to  bear  the  pains  and  misfortunes  of 
the  world,  and  that  ^  all  their  iniquities  and  transgressions  were 
carried  by  him,  as  though  he  had  been  the  scape-goat,  and  that 
from  him  they  were  to  receive  chastisement  or  correction,  when 
they  were  at  peace,  i.  e.  that  they  were  then  to  be  warned  not 
to  sin,  lest  the  same  fate  should  befal  them  which  Israel's  sin 
had  drawn  down  upon  him.  By  his  stripes  we  are  healed: 
because  they  thought  that  every  one  who  oppressed  Israel  was 
healed  from  his  iniquities.  ^  This  has  reference  to  their  belief 
that  we  slew  Jesus  because  by  his  death  all  their  iniquities  are 
atoned  for,  whereas  we,  by  the  same  death,  arc  loaded  with 
the  penalty  of  them  all.  '^  The  allusion  is  to  Isi'ael  who  endured 
their  exile  with  a  cheerful  countenance,  and  listened  in  silence 
to  the  reproaches  cast  upon  them.  ^The  Gentiles  took  them 
and  oppressed  them  and  plundered  their  riches,  Avhether  by  Ivy, 
i.  e.  by  violence,  or  DQ^J'D,  i.  e.  by  unjustly  condemning  them. 
And  if  we  had  attempted  to  relate  the  lot  of  each  separate 
generation  of  them,  tvho  would  be  able  to  recite  the  long  tale  of 
their  weary  life  up  to  the  time  when  the  final  annihilation  cut 
them  off  from  the  land  of  life  ?  For  the  transgression  of  my 
people,  etc. :  either  the  words  of  the  Gentiles  declaring  that 
misfortune  would  fall  upon  Israel  because  of  their  iniquity,  and 
that  therefore  it  would  be  their  duty  to  destroy  them ;  or  the 
words  of  God  shewing  how  all  their  troubles  had  come  upon 

a  The  sense  here  given,  though  not  the  one  most  usually  borne  by  the 
Hebrew  Weseth,  seems  fixed  by  the  passage  referred  to,  where  the  author 
remarks  (with  reference  to  Ps.  Ixxviii.  66),  that  there  were  two  causes  which 
rendered  the  Jews  peculiarly  liable  to  such  complaints,  namely,  the  melan- 
choly produced  by  constant  depression  of  mind  during  exile,  and  their  seden- 
tary habits. 


96  R.  SHEM  TOBH   BEN   SHAPRUT.  [liii.  9- 

Isracl  (who  are  the  Lord's  people)  because  they  had  sinned  and 
transgressed,  and  therefore  he  had  hidden  his  face  from  them ; 
otherwise,  indeed,  the  Gentiles  woukl  liave  had  no  power  over 
them,  as  it  is  said(Deut.  xxxii.  30),  'Except  their  rock  had  sold 
them,'  etc.  Ver.  10  speaks  to  the  same  effect :  All  their  misery, 
it  says,  was  the  Lord's  doing  as  a  chastisement  for  their  trans- 
gression. The  first  of  these  two  explanations  seems  to  me 
preferable.  **  The  manner  of  the  Gentiles  was  to  adopt  towards 
the  Jews  a  course  of  persistent  wickedness,  so  that  whenever 
they  saw  a  single  wealthy  Jew  they  would  seek  some  mischief 
against  him,  in  order  to  kill  him  and  secure  his  riches,  although 
there  was  no  violence  in  his  hands,  or  deceitfulness  in  his 
mouth.  After  this  he  would  be  buried  in  the  graves  of  the 
wicked,  like  men  executed  for  some  crime.  They  would  do  the 
same  even  to  such  as  were  not  wealthy,  declaring  that  they  were 
wealthy,  and  must  possess  riches.  ^"  The  Lord,  then,  was  pleased 
to  bruise  him;  "  yet  for  the  labour  which  he  endured  in  exile 
and  accepted  cheerfully,  he  will  he  satisfied  with  the  portion 
allotted  to  him,  knowing,  as  he  does,  that  in  virtue  of  it  he  will 
justify  many  so  that  they  will  '  behold  the  j)leasantness  of  the 
Lord,  and  meditate  in  his  temple '  (Ps.  xxvii.  4) :  lue  will  hear 
and  atone  for  tJieir  iniquities,  when  the  expiation  for  his  own 
sins  and  his  fathers'  (by  which  is  meant  the  exile  with  its  at- 
tendant miseries)  has  been  accomplished.  Cf.  Lam.  iv.  22 
(which  is  the  reverse  of  Gen.  xv.  16);  and  for  the  sons  hearing 
the  iniquities  of  their  fathers.  Lam.  v.  7.  ^'^He  will  be  worthy 
to  divide  the  spoil  of  his  enemies,  as  a  reward  for  his  having 
poured  out  his  soul  to  die  for  the  sanctity  of  God's  name.  And 
he  was  numbered  with  the  transgressors,  viz.  when  condemned 
by  the  Gentiles,  as  is  described  in  ver.  9  :  he  also  carried  the 
gin  of  many,  for  besides  his  own  sins,  he  bore  (according  to 
Lam.  v.  7)  the  sins  of  his  fathers  and  those  of  his  sons  as  well, 
and  interceded  for  transgressors :  Israel  interceded  (Jer.  xxix.  7) 
for  sinners  and  transgressors;  cf.  Ps.  xxxv.  13.  7  hei'e  means 
for  the  sake  0/. . . ,  as  Gen.  xx.  13. 


-liii.  12.]  II.  SHEM    TOBH    BEN    SH.VPRUT.  97 

Questions  propounded  by  Maestro  Alphonso  the  Apostate,  wi  the 
book  of  The  Wars  of  tlie  Lord,  with  the  author  s  reply. 

The  Trinitarian  : — Why  do  you  raise  an  objection  on  the 
ground  of  the  words  'his  countenance  marred  beyond  manT 
No  argument  can  be  derived  from  what  Jeremiah  says  (xi.  i6), 
because,  as  a  man's  circumstances  change,  so  is  he  himself 
changed  likewise.  The  \vords  have  reference  to  Christ's  man- 
hood :  and  in  this  respect  God  is  really  superior  to  him.  Then 
the  expressions,  a  '  man  of  pains  '  and  '  known  to  sickness '  allude 
to  the  time  when  they  set  him  at  nought  before  his  death,  and 
wei'e  known  to  be  ti"ue  to  all  Isi'ael  who  went  up  to  the  feast. 
He  is  called  '  smitten  of  Grod,'  because  the  foolish  and  wicked 
men  who  condemned  him  thought  they  were  punishing  his 
transgressions  in  accordance  with  the  law.  '  The  Lord  was 
pleased  to  bruise  him,'  viz.  in  respect  of  his  manhood :  '  be- 
cause of  the  transgression  of  my  people,'  etc. ;  this  resembles 
ver.  II,  'their  iniquities  he  will  bear,'  becau.se  the  murderous 
death  which  they  wreaked  upon  him  is  '  a  blow  for  them,' 
inasmuch  as  in  consequence  of  it,  they  will  be  in  perpetual 
exile,  as  the  Scripture  says,  Ps.  Ixxxi.  i6.  Lastly,  by  seed  are 
signified  his  disciples,  who  will  prolong  their  days  for  ever; 
and  by  the  expression  '  poured  out  his  soul  to  die '  the  prophet 
meaus  to  indicate  his  yielding  up  of  the  ghost. 

The  Unitarian  : — Your  argument,  founded  on  the  fact  that, 
owing  to  sickness  and  trouble  a  man  changes  himself  as  his 
circumstances  change,  comes  to  nothing,  because  the  words 
'He  came  up  as  a  sucker'  etc.  shew  that  Isaiah  is  speaking 
of  the  beginning  of  his  appearance  :  if  now  he  was  even  then 
'  despised  and  forlorn  of  men '  and  devoid  of  form  or  beauty, 
when  was  he  ever  like  a  '  flourishing  olive-tree,  fair  with  well- 
formed  fruit?'  Again,  the  expression  'known  to  sickness' 
cannot  allude  to  the  time  when  the  soldiers  smote  him,  because 
this  was  immediately  succeeded  by  his  crucifixion,  as  it  is  stated, 
Mat.  xxvii ;   in  that  case,  then,  there  could  have  been  no  time 

H 


98  R.  SHEM    TOBH    BKN    SHAPRUT,  [Hi,  liii. 

for  his  blows  to  produce  sickness.  Nor,  in  fact,  is  it  ever 
asserted  in  any  of  the  Gospels  that  he  did  sicken  from  them, 
or  that  he  was  even  smitten  severely,  but  only  that  they  stnick 
him  on  the  face  by  way  of  insult :  moreover,  by  your  argument, 
the  expression  ought  rather  to  have  been  '  known  to  smitings.'' 
And  if,  as  you  assert,  the  words  '  stricken  and  smitten '  refer 
to  his  condemnation  and  punishment,  the  prophet  ought  rather 
to  have  written  '  slain  and  put  to  death ; '  for  the  penalty  he 
then  paid  did  not  consist  in  oppression  or  smitings,  but  in 
death.  Again,  if  the  '  transgression  of  my  people '  means  their 
transgression  in  killing  him,  he  ought  not  to  have  called  them 
my  people,  because  he  must  have  counted  them  as  his  enemies : 
he  ought  rather  to  have  said  '  the  people '  absolutely  [or  his 
people],  cf.  Ex.  xxxii.  7  (Dent.  ix.  12).  Moreover,  since  even 
after  the  transgression  which  they  had  committed,  he  still  calls 
them  his  people,  it  is  plain  that  Israel's  name  did  not  perish,  as 
you  say  was  the  case.  And  your  assertion  that  his  seed  means 
his  disciples  is  untrue,  because  the  word  is  invariably  employed 
in  connexion  with  carnal  birth  :  as  I  have  stated  in  its  proper 
place,  it  is  impossible  that  the  prophet  should  designate  the 
disciples  as  sons  .... 


XXIV.     R.  MOSHEH    KOIIEN   IBN   CRISPIN. 


This  Parasliah  the  commentators  agree  in  exphaining  of  the 
Captivity  of  Israel,  although  the  singular  number  is  used  in  it 
throughout.  The  expression  my  servant  they  compare  rashly 
with  xli.  8,  '  thou  Israel  art  my  servant,'  where  the  propliet  is 
speaking  of  the  people  of  Israel  (which  would  be  singular)  ; 
here,  however,  he  does  not  mention  Isi-ael,  but  says  simply  my 
servant;  we  cannot  therefore  understand  the  word  in  the  same 
sense.  Again  in  xli.  8  he  addresses  the  whole  nation  by  the 
name  of  their  father  Israel  (or  Jacob,  as  he  continues,  'Jacob 
whom  I  have  chosen '),  but  here  he  says  my  servant  alone,  and 
uniformly  employs  the  singular,  and  as  thei'e  is  no  cause  con- 
straining us  to  do  so,  why  should  we  here  interpret  the  word 
collectively,  and  thereby  distort  the  passage  from  its  natural 
sense?  Others  have  supposed  it  to  mean  the  just  in  this 
present  world,  who  are  crushed  and  oppressed  now,  but  who 
in  the  future  will  have  understanding,  and  'shine  as  the 
brightness  of  the  firmament'  (Dan.  xii.  3):  but  these  too,  for 
the  same  reason,  by  altering  the  number,  distort  the  verses 
from  their  natural  meaning.  As  then  it  seemed  to  me  that 
the  doors  of  the  literal  interpretation  of  the  Parasliah  were 
shut  in  their  face,  and  that  'they  wearied  themselves  to  find 
the  entrance,'  having  forsaken  the  knowledge  of  our  Teachers, 
and  inclined  after  the  'stubbornness  of  their  own  hearts,'  and 
of  their  own  opinion,  I  am  pleased  to  interpret  it,  in  accord- 

H  2 


100  R.  MOSIIEH    KOHEN    TBN    CRISPIN.  [Hi,  Hii. 

ancc  with  the  teaching  of  our  Ral)bis,  of  the  King  Messiah, 
and  will  be  careful,  so  far  as  I  am  able,  to  adhere  to  the  literal 
sense  :  thus,  possibly,  I  shall  bo  free  from  the  forced  and  far- 
fetched interpretations  of  which  others  have  been  guilty.  In 
the  course  of  my  exposition,  I  shall  allude  to  the  ])hrascs  in  it 
which  will  convince  the  man  of  intelligence  that  it  cannot 
(as  is  done  by  our  opponents)  be  explained  with  reference  to 
God ;  thus,  in  addition  to  the  exposition  itself,  I  shall  be  en- 
abled to  offer  a  reply  to  their  objections. 

My  servant.  I  may  begin  by  remaj-king  that  we  find  this 
term  used  in  Scripture  of  an  individual  prophet,  as  Moses 
(Num.  xii.  7),  and  Job  (i.  8),  of  all  the  prophets  generally  (Amos 
iii.  7),  and  of  the  whole  of  Israel  (Lev.  xxv.  42).  In  each  of  these 
cases,  it  is  plainly  applied  to  the  sous  of  men  born  of  human 
parents ;  but  we  do  not  find  it  used  of  angels,  known  clearly  to 
be  such,  because  it  is  only  applicable  to  one  who  enslaves  him- 
self assiduously  to  the  service  of  God,  and  directs  both  his 
person  and  his  thoughts  'to  serve  him  with  all  his  heart  and 
with  all  his  soul '  and  with  all  the  members  of  his  body  (for 
this  is  the  meaning  of  'all  his  strength'),  like  the  faithful 
servant  of  whom  it  is  said,  '  With  all  my  strength  have  I  served 
your  father'  (Gen.  xxxi.  6),  who  keeps  himself  aloof  from 
serving  any  besides,  and  who  therefore,  because  it  is  his  own 
choice  to  serve  him,  is  called  the  servant  of  the  Lord.  This 
service  is  implanted  in  the  heart,  as  it  is  written  (Deut.  xi.  13), 
'  And  to  serve  him  in  all  your  heart : '  it  cannot,  therefore,  be 
predicated  of  an  angel,  i.  e.  of  any  of  the  abstract  intelligences, 
for  it  has  its  seat  in  a  bodily  organ,  in  the  heart,  and  nowhere 
else,  and  an  angel  has  no  body  or  bodily  strength.  A  fortiori, 
then,  the  expression  cannot  possibly  be  applied  to  the  substance 
of  the  Creator  himself,  as  is  done  by  our  opponents  in  their 
theory  of  the  Trinity,  according  to  which,  this  man  was  of  the 
substance  of  the  Creator.  For  they  hold  that  the  whole  [God- 
head] is  of  one  substance,  but  that  it  is  divided  into  three 
persons,  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Spirit,  that  the  Son  took 


lii.  I?,-]  i{.  MositEii  kohp:n'  id\  Crispin.  101 

flosh  and  came  down  to  the  earth :  now,  oven  granting  all  this, 
which,  though  it  is  inipossi])le  to  speak  about,  still  less  to  con- 
ceive, you  nevertheless  maintain,  how  could  he  describe  himself 
as  '  niy  servant,'  i.  e.  as  one  who  devoted  himself  to  serve  '  me, 
i.  e.  to  serve  himself?  since,  for  a  man  to  be  called  his  own 
servant  is  a  palpable  absurdity.  He  shall  be  high,  etc.  These 
words  afford  likewise  an  answer  to  our  opponents ;  for  they 
refer  exclusively  to  the  future.  The  pi'ophet  says,  '  He  will  be 
high  and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceedingly ; '  and  this  language 
clearly  cannot  be  applied  to  God ;  for  how  could  it  be  said  of 
him  that,  like  a  mortal  man,  he  will  at  some  future  time  be 
high  and  exalted,  as  though  he  had  not  been  so  before  ?  yet, 
if  God  is  God,  he  is  the  same  in  the  past  as  he  will  be  in  the 
future.  If,  now,  they  say  that  the  word  servant  denotes  the 
flesh  in  which  he  became  incarnate  in  the  world,  a  twofold 
answer  is  close  at  hand  :  i .  fi'om  tlie  prophet's  saying,  '  My 
servant  shall  have  understanding,'  it  is  clear  the  term  is  con- 
nected expressly  with  something  possessing  intelligence ;  it  is, 
however,  well  known,  that  the  intellectual  powers  reside,  not 
in  the  body,  but  in  the  soul  :  2.  he  says  that  he  will  be  '  high 
and  exalted ; '  but  during  the  whole  time  that  he  is  reported  to 
have  been  incarnate,  we  do  not  find  that  exaltation  or  supremacy 
ever  fell  to  his  lot,  even  to  the  day  of  his  death. 

I  will  now  proceed  to  my  exposition.  ^^  Behold  my  servant 
shall  have  understanding.  From  the  prophet's  saying  'under- 
standing,' it  may  be  seen  that  all  the  lofty  predicates  which 
he  assigns  to  him  have  their  source  in  this  attribute;  in 
virtue  of  his  comprehensive  intelligence  he  will  attain  to  an 
elevation  above  that  even  of  the  most  perfect  men  in  the  world. 
He  shall  be  high  and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceedingly.  According 
to  the  ]\Iidrash  of  our  Rabbis  ;  '  he  will  be  higher  than  Abraham, 
more  exalted  than  Moses,  loftier  than  Solomon,  exceedingly  above 
the  ministering  angels.'  He  will  be  higher  than  Abraham,  who 
was  first  of  all  a  '  high  father,'  and  afterwards  the  father  of  a 
multitude.      He  will   be   more  exalted  than  Moses,  who  was 


102  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN    IBN    CRISPIN.  [lii.  13. 

'exalted*  above  the  exalted  ones  of  Levi'  (cf.  Num.  iii.  32), 
who  was  a  prophet  such  that  '  none  arose  like  him  in  Israel ' 
(Dcut.  xxxiv.  10),  who  'saved'  Israel  'with  a  great  salvation' 
(cf.  I  Chron.  xi.  14)  when  they  came  out  of  Egypt,  and  the 
report  of  whom  spread  into  all  places  until  '  the  dukes  of  Edom 
were  confounded '  before  him,  and  '  trembling  seized  the  mighty 
men  of  Moab,  and  all  the  inhabitants  of  Canaan  melted  away ' 
(Ex.  XV.  1 5).  But  this  one  will  be  exalted  far  above  Moses  : 
for  when  he  gathers  together  our  scattered  ones  from  the  four 
corners  of  the  earth,  he  will  be  exalted  in  the  eyes  of  all  the 
kings  in  the  whole  woi'ld,  and  all  of  them  will  serve  him,  and 
will  exalt  him  above  them,  as  Daniel  prophesies  concerning  him, 
'All  nations,  peoples,  and  tongues  shall  serve  him'  (Dan.  vii.  14, 
27).  He  will  be  loftier  than  Solomon,  whose  dignity  was  so 
lofty  that  he  is  said  to  have  'sat  on  the  throne  of  the  Lord' 
(i  Chron.  xxix.  23),  and  our  Rabbis  say^  that  he  was  king  over 
both  the  upper  and  the  nether  world.  But  the  King  Messiah, 
in  his  all-comprehending  intelligence,  will  be  loftier  than 
Solomon.  Exceedingly  above  the  ministering  angels,  because 
that  same  comprehensive  intelligence  will  approach  [God]  more 
nearly  than  theirs.  For  it  is  an  exceedingly  high  privilege,  that 
one  whose  nature  is  compound  and  material  should  attain  to  a 
grade  of  intelligence  more  nearly  Divine  than  that  which 
belongs  to  the  incorporeal ;  and  so  it  is  said  of  him  that  '  his 
strength  is  greater  than  that  of  the  ministering  angels,'  because 
these  have  no  impediment  in  the  exercise  of  their  intellect, 
whereas  that  which  is  compound  is  continually  impeded  in 
consequence  of  material  element  in  its  nature.  Accordingly 
the  grade  of  his  intelligence  being  such  as  this,  he  is  said  to 
be  '  lofty  exceedingly,'  and  his  strength  to  be  '  greater  than  the 
angels.'     It  is  probable,  however,  that  this  Messiali  will  not  be 

"  A.  V.  '  chief  over  the  chief,'  but  the  word  rendered  chief  (elsewhere  also 
prince)  means  properly  '  one  lifted  up  or  exalted.'  In  the  text  the  phrase 
is  applied  to  Eliezcr,  not  to  3Ioses. 

•"  Thalmud  of  Babylon,  Sanhedrin,  fol.  20*". 


lii.    I.?.]  R.  MOSHEH    KOIIEN    IBN    CRISPIN.  103 

born  in  the  midst  of  the  captivity  of  Israel,  in  one  of  the  many 
phxces  all  over  the  earth  where  they  are  bowed  down  beneath 
tlie  Gentiles,  because  there,  beiiig  in  such  a  state  of  subjection, 
it  would  be  impossible  for  a  man  to  be  born  who  would  attain 
to  this  high  elevation ;  but  there  are,  perhaps,  spots  in  the 
world,  where  Israel  dwell  in  tents  (Jer.  xxxv.  7)  in  the  midst 
of  the  wilderness,  far  away  from  the  dominion  of  the  nations 
though  still  in  exile  from  their  own  land ;  and  these  may 
represent  a  part  of  the  Israelites  whom  Sanhdrib,  king  of  Assyria, 
carried  away  captive  to  Chalach  and  Chabor  (2  Kings  xviii.  11), 
and  who  were  afterwards  joined  by  the  families  of  the  house  of 
David,  and,  in  particular,  by  that  pure  tribe  out  of  which  the 
King  Messiah  is  destined  to  arise.  And  when  this  '  servant 
of  the  Lord '  is  born,  from  the  day  when  he  comes  to  years  of 
discretion,  he  will  continue  to  be  marked  by  the  possession  of 
intelligence  enabling  him  to  acquire  from  God  what  it  is 
impossible  for  any  to  acquire  until  he  reaches  that  height 
whither  none  of  the  sons  of  men,  except  him,  have  ever 
ascended  :  from  that  day  he  will  be  counted  with  his  people 
Israel,  and  will  share  their  subjugation  and  distress;  'in  all 
their  affliction '  (Is.  Ixiii.  9)  he  will  be  exceedingly  afflicted ;  and 
because  of  their  being  outcasts  and  scattered  to  the  ends  of  the 
world,  his  grief  will  be  such  that  the  colour  of  his  countenance 
will  be  changed  from  that  of  a  man,  and  pangs  and  sick- 
nesses will  seize  upon  him  (for  great  grief,  as  physicians  know, 
by  producing  melancholy,  subjects  a  man  to  many  diseases) ; 
and  all  the  chastisements  which  come  upon  him  in  consequence 
of  his  gi'ief  will  be  for  our  sakes,  and  not  from  any  deficiency  or 
sin  on  his  part  which  might  bring  punishment  in  their  ti'ain, 
because  he  is  perfect,  in  the  completeness  of  perfection,  as  Isaiah 
says  (xi.  2  f.).  Truly  all  his  pains  and  sicknesses  will  be  for 
us ;  continually  will  he  be  prostrating  himself,  aud  stretching 
out  his  hands  to  God  on  our  behalf,  and  praying  him  to  hasten 
the  time  of  our  redemption,  until  in  compassion  upon  him, 
and  in  order  to  shorten  the  intense  grief  felt  by  him  for  us, 


104  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN    IBN    CRISPIN.  [lii.   14— 

the  Creator  '  speeds '  the  time  of  our  deliverance.  This  is  what 
the  prophet  means  when  he  says  (Ix.  22),  'In  its  time,  I  will 
speed  it :'  he  will  speed  to  redeem  us,  before  the  time  comes  ; 
and  that  because  of  his  compassion  on  the  'affliction'  wherewith 
'  he  was  afflicted '  for  our  sakes.  And  so  great  will  be  his  gTief 
and  pain  endured  thus  on  our  behalf,  that  those  who  see  him 
will  despise  him,  thinking  that  in  consequence  of  his  many 
deficiencies  and  sins  God  brought  all  those  chastisements  upon 
him,  or  else  that  they  were  intended  as  chastisements  of  love ; 
for  they  will  never  believe  that  such  sufferings  could  be  caused 
merely  by  grief.  And  because  of  their  attributing  them  to 
these  deficiencies  and  sins,  he  will  be  despised  in  their  eyes, 
and  they  will  count  him  as  nothing,  not  perceiving  the  great 
perfection  that  is  in  him,  who  will  be  a  compassionate  father 
to  have  compassion  on  us,  even  more  than  Moses  our  master, 
and  in  the  multitude  of  his  compassion  for  us  will  draw  to 
himself  all  those  sicknesses  and  chastisements,  until  the  Creator 
hears  his  prayer,  and  looks  upon  all  his  pain,  and  has  com- 
passion on  ua  for  his  sake,  and  speeds  our  redemption,  and 
sends  him  to  redeem  us.  And  then  at  last  the  Creator  will 
assign  him  his  reward  for  all  the  grief  which  he  bore  for  us, 
and  will  '  multiply  his  seed,  and  prolong  his  days,  and  divide 
him  a  portion  in  the  earth  among  the  great,  and  give  him  the 
spoil  of  mighty  nations.'  Such  is  the  meaning  of  the  Parashah 
as  a  whole  :  I  may  now  explain  each  verse  separately  for  itself. 
"  As  many  were  desolated  at  thee :  he  means  Israel  who  are 
sitting  in  desolation  on  account  of  the  delay  which  hinders 
the  approach  of  the  Messiah.  So  marred  was  his  countenance 
beyond  Tnan :  i.  e.  so  much  was  he  himself  also  pained  and 
grieved  at  the  delay  in  his  coming  to  redeem  us,  that  his 
countenance  grew  disfigured  beyond  any  man's,  and  his  form, 
from  the  same  cause,  more  than  the  forms  of  other  men.  The 
prophet  begins  in  the  2nd  pcrs.  at  thee,  and  then  proceeds  to 
speak  in  the  3rd  his  countenance :  he  ought  properly  to  have 
used  the  3rd  pers.  from  the  first,  at  him,  but  it  is  customary 


-lii.   15.]  K.  MOSHEH    KOIIEN    TBX    CRISPIN.  105 

for  the  tM'o  persons  to  be  thus  combined  in  u  single  verse,  as 
'Hear  peoples,  all  of  them  !'  (i  Kings  xxii.  28,  Miciih  i.  2),  where 
it  ought  to  have  been  all  of  you  ;  and  so  *  All  of  them,  return  ! ' 
(Job  xvii.  10),  and  often.  ^^  So  will  he  sprinkle  many  nations, 
i.  e.  as  his  countenance  is  marred  beyond  man  when  he  comes 
to  redeem  us,  so  he  will  scatter  many  nations  and  disperse  them 
to  the  ends  of  the  earth,  like  one  who  sprinkles,  i,  e.  who 
scatters  blood.  The  expression  sprinkle  means  that  he  will 
scatter  them  without  difficulty,  like  one  who  sprinkles  blood, 
just  as  previously  (xi.  4)  it  is  predicted  that  he  will  '  smite  the 
earth  with  the  rod  of  his  mouth : '  and  so  I  find  Yonathan 
interprets  the  word.  At  him  kings  will  shut  their  mouth  : 
because  from  the  vastuess  of  his  might  and  the  number  of  his 
miracles  and  the  greatness  of  the  terror  cast  upon  them,  when 
he  '  smites  the  earth  with  the  rod  of  his  mouth,  and  with  the 
breath  of  his  lips  slays  the  wicked,'  they  will  be  so  amazed  at 
his  rebuke  as  to  close  their  mouth,  and  not  to  speak  from 
amazement  at  what  he  does.  For  that  which  tvas  not  told  them 
they  have  seen :  for  although  much  of  his  work  was  told  them, 
what  they  have  seen  has  been  far  more.  And  that  whicJi  they 
had  not  heard  have  they  observed :  what  they  had  never  heard 
before  about  his  high  dignity,  and  gi'eat  wisdom,  they  will  find 
in  him  when  they  observe  his  work ;  and  therefore  they  are 
amazed  so  that  they  cannot  speak.  Upon  this  explanation  yQp 
means  to  shut  (as  Deut.  xv.  7,  Job  v.  16):  it  may,  however, 
mean  to  open  (as  Cant.  ii.  8,  of  the  legs  opened  or  extended  in 
leaping) ;  in  the  latter  case,  the  prophet  says  they  will  open 
their  mouth  to  tell  of  his  greatness  and  dignity.  There  are 
some,  too,  who  explain  ntJ  in  the  sense  of  speaking — the  force 
of  the  Hif'il  being  'he  will  make  others  speak  :'  for  a  speaker 
sprinkles  and  scatters  his  words  towards  his  hearers,  and 
accordingly  we  find  5)U3  to  drop  used  both  of  the  clouds  drop- 
ping water  (Judg.  v.  4),  and  of  speech  (Micah  ii.  6) ;  since  the 
two  actions  are  spoken  of  by  a  single  term,  we  learn  that  there 
is  some  feature  common  to  both.     If  sprinkle  be  understood  in 


106  R.  MOSHEII    KOIIEN    IBN    CRISPIN.  [liii.   i- 

tlie  same  sense  here,  it  will  mean  that,  as  his  countenance  was 
marred  beyond  man,  he  will  make  many  nations  speak  of  it, 
when  he  comes  forth  to  redeem  us,  and  they  will  ask,  'Will  a 
man  whose  form  and  countenance  is  thus  marred,  come  to  save 
and  redeem  a  people  so  numerous  as  Israel  who  are  dispersed 
in  eveiy  corner  of  the  earth  T  but  afterwards,  when  he  comes 
to  fight  against  the  kings  and  to  redeem  Israel  from  their 
power,  and  when  they  behold  his  might  and  the  miracles  he 
will  perform,  they  will  shut  their  mouth  in  silent  amazement, 
seeing  in  him  marvels  which  had  never  been  told  them,  and 
discerning  high  attributes  which  before  they  had  never  heard 
of.  (Or,  upon  the  other  view,  they  will  open  their  mouth,  in 
order,  viz.  to  tell  of  his  greatness,  as  I  have  explained.) 

LIII.  ^  Who  hath  believed  our  report  ?  who  was  able  to  believe 
the  report  which  we  heard  of  him,  when  they  said  to  us  that, 
as  the  prophets  had  announced,  he  had  at  last  come  to  redeem 
Israel  'with  a  mighty  hand,  and  stretched-out  aim,'  until  we 
saw  the  matter  with  our  own  eyes  1  And  the  arm  of  the  Lord, 
upon  whom  has  it  been  revealed  ?  The  arm,  being  the  principal 
and  strongest  limb,  is  used  metaphorically  for  strength,  as  Ps. 
Ixxxix.  14,  'Thine  is  an  arm  with  might !'  The  meaning  thus 
is.  Upon  whom  of  yore  was  the  might  of  the  Lord  revealed,  so 
as  for  him  to  rule  by  means  of  it  over  all  the  sons  of  men, 
as  it  is  now  seen  upon  this  Messiah,  and  as  it  has  never  been 
seen  upon  any  besides  him  1  "^  This  verse  states  how  the  servant 
of  the  Lord  grew  up,  viz.  like  a  branching  tree  which  had 
sprung  up  out  of  the  dry  earth  and  come  to  maturity  before 
Mm,  i.  e.  before  his  appearance,  and  which,  as  the  branches 
rose  out  of  the  roots,  we  perceived  had  sprung  up  in  deficiency 
of  water.  Or,  perhaps,  he  may  be  compared  to  both  the 
branches  and  to  the  root  separately,  each  of  which  sprang  up 
out  of  the  dry  ground,  and  without  either  form  or  comeliness. 
The  King  then,  through  the  grief  and  sorrow  which  he  bore  on 
our  account  from  the  time  of  his  coming  to  years  of  discretion, 
and  which  clung  to  him  until  it  left  him  no  form  or  comelinees. 


-liii.  4.]  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN    IBN    CRISPIN.  107 

resembles  either  the  branching  tree  coming  up  out  of  a  root 
planted  in  the  drj'  earth,  or  both  the  branches  and  the  root 
together,  Avhich  sprang  u])  out  of  the  dry  soil.  Sucker  is  used 
for  the  boughs  and  branches  of  a  tree,  as  Ps.  Ixxx.  12.  The 
passage  must  be  understood  as  if  it  had  run  thus  : — And  he 
came  up  like  a  sucker  and  like  a  root  out  of  the  dry  earth, 
before  him  (i.  e.  which  we  noticed  growing  up  before  he  ap- 
peared), which  had  no  foi'm  and  no  comeliness  ;  the  comparison 
is  thus  between  the  servant  of  the  Lord  and  these.  And  we 
shall  see  him,  etc.,  i.  e.  from  the  moment  when  we  see  that  he 
is  come  to  redeem  us,  although  his  countenance  is  unlike  that 
of  other  men,  because  of  the  changes  marked  upon  it  by  his 
grief  (as  we  have  already  explained),  yet  on  account  of  his 
mighty  wondei's,  the  great  and  desii'able  deeds  he  will  perform, 
and  the  salvation  with  which  he  will  save  us,  we  shall  desire 
him — desire  to  draw  near  to  him  and  behold  him.  Others 
suppose  that  the  two  clauses  are  parallel,  the  force  of  the 
negative  extending  over  both  the  last  words  'we  shall  see 
him,  but  there  will  be  no  beauty  that  we  should  desire  him  : ' 
on  account  of  his  marred  and  altered  countenance  we  shall 
not  desire  to  look  at  him.  ^  Despised,  and  forlorn  of  men : 
despised,  namely,  in  the  eyes  of  the  world  because  of  his 
loathsome  appearance.  Forlorn  of  men  means  either  forlornest, 
i.  e.  the  most  insignificant  of  men,  or  else  forsaken  by  men, 
who  will  refuse  to  associate  with  him  for  the  reason  just 
given.  A  man  of  pains  and  known  to  sickness,  i.  e.  possessed 
of  pains  and  destined  to  sicknesses  :  so  all  that  see  him  will 
say  of  him.  They  will  also,  it  continues,  on  account  of  his 
loathsome  appearance,  be  like  men  hiding  their  faces  from,  him  : 
they  will  not  be  able  to  look  at  him,  because  of  his  disfigure- 
ment. And  even  we,  who  before  were  longing  to  see  him, 
when  we  see  what  he  is  like,  shall  despise  him  till  we  no 
longer  esteem  him,  i.  e.  we  shall  cease  to  think  of  him  as  a 
Redeemer  able  to  redeem  us  and  fight  our  battles  because  of 
all  the  efiects  which  we  see  produced  by  his  weakness.     *  Surely 


108  n.  MOSHEH   KOHEN    IBN    CRISPIN.  [liii.  S" 

our  sicknesses  he  hath  carried.  These  words  explain  the  cause 
of  his  sufferings ;  they  all  come  upon  him  on  account  of  the 
grief  and  sorrow  which  he  will  feel  for  the  sicknesses  caused 
by  our  iniquities :  it  will  be  as  though  he  had  borne  all  the 
sicknesses  and  chastisements  which  fall  upon  us.  Or,  jierhaps, 
'carry'  may  mean  take  aivay,  forgive,  as  Ex.  x.  17;  from  his 
pity  and  his  prayers  for  us  he  will  atone  for  our  transgressions  : 
and  our  pains  he  hath  home,  viz.  as  a  burden  upon  himself, 
cf.  I  Kings  V.  29 ;  i.  e.  all  the  weight  of  our  pains  he  will  carry, 
being  himself  pained  exceedingly  by  them.  And  we  esteemed  him 
stricken,  smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted.  We  shall  not  believe 
that  there  could  be  any  man  ready  to  endure  such  pain  and 
grief  as  would  disfigure  his  countenance,  even  for  his  children, 
much  less  for  his  people  :  it  will  seem  a  certain  truth  to  us 
that  such  terrible  sufferings  must  have  come  upon  him  as  a 
penalty  for  his  own  many  shortcomings  and  errors  :  and  there- 
foi'e  we  shall  account  him  '  smitten  of  God ;'  in  other  words, 
we  shall  consider  them  to  have  been  sent  upon  him  directly 
from  heaven.  ^  But  it  is  not  so ;  they  are  not  a  penalty  sent 
from  God,  but  he  was  panged  for  our  transgressions  (?7ino 
from  PTI,  Ps.  xlviii.  7  al.) — pangs,  as  of  laboux',  will  seize  him 
for  the  distress  that  has  come  upon  us  for  our  transgressions. 
He  was  bruised  for  our  iniquities,  i.  e.  crushed  and  broken,  as 
Ps.  cxliii.  3,  'He  hath  bruised  my  life  down  to  the  gi'ound,' 
Lam.  iii.  34,  Is.  Ivii.  15  :  his  grief  for  our  misery  will  be  so 
great  as  quite  to  break  him  down.  The  chastisement  of  our 
peace:  some  render  'the  chastisement  of  the  ivltole  ofiis,^  under- 
standing DvC  in  the  sense  of  completeness,  entirety,  cf.  i  Kings 
vii.  51,  Gen.  xv.  16,  xxxiii.  18,  Deut.  xxv.  15  :  others,  however, 
adhere  to  the  meaning  peace, — the  chastisements  which  ought 
to  have  come  upon  us  while  we  were  at  peace  have  as  it  were 
fallen  upon  him.  And  by  union  with  him  we  are  healed,  i.  e. 
although  he  is  in  the  utmost  distress  from  pain  and  sickness, 
yet  by  union  and  nearness  to  him,  we  are  healed  from  all  the 
diseases  to  which   our   afflictions   give   rise.      Others   explain 


-liii.  8.]  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEX    IBN    CRISPIN.  109 

mi2n  as  identical  with  mian  (with  loss  of  the  Dagesh,  as 
nP2"i3n  Jer.  xiii.  23,  of  the  dark  stripes  on  a  leopard,  which 
rcsenihle  the  dark  stripes  on  a  man's  flesh)  :  upon  this  view 
misn  means  an  incision  or  sUt.  Our  Rabbis  explain  it  as 
signifying  a  l)low  which  causes  the  blood  to  coagulate  beneath 
the  skin,  in  accordance  with  their  saying  <=,  '  What  is  a  mi3n 
which  never  disappears  1  It  is  a  bruise  where  the  blood, 
though  it  does  not  break  out  through  the  skin,  nevertheless 
coagulates  beneath  it : '  the  meaning  will  then  be,  that  by  the 
weals  breaking  out  on  his  flesh  in  consequence  of  his  anxiety 
for  us,  God  will  have  mercy  upon  him,  and,  by  sparing  him 
for  the  sake  of  his  sufferings  endured  on  our  account,  heal  us. 
*Like  sheep  which  have  no  shepherd,  and  which  wander 
hither  and  thither  on  the  plain,  so  were  we  wandering  in  our 
owTi  works  and  ways,  each  going  after  his  own  business,  and 
none  caring  for  the  service  of  God:  our  iniquity  was  'too 
great  to  be  forgiven,'  and  because  in  our  exile  we  had  incun-ed 
the  extremest  penalty,  behold  it  was  as  though  this  penalty, 
which  was  deserved  by  all  of  us,  had  been  laid  by  God  upon 
him.  ''This  verse  describes  the  penalty  thus  mentioned  as 
seemingly  laid  on  him  by  the  Creator,  when  the  sufferings 
come  upon  him,  which  (as  I  have  explained)  he  will  cause  for 
himself:  in  his  distress  he  will  then  resemble  a  man  whom 
his  creditors  press  upon  in  order  to  take  from  him  what  he 
has.  B'W  is  applied  to  the  extortion  of  money,  as  Deut.  xv.  2. 
t\y^  is  used  with  reference  to  the  body ;  while  enduring  his 
sicknesses  and  pain,  he  is  like  one  w^hose  body  is  being  afflicted 
with  stripes  and  other  humiliating  punishments :  all  these  he 
acquiesces  in,  and  accepts  with  a  cheerful  countenance.  He  is 
like  a  sJieep  in  not  opening  his  mouth  to  cry;  and  is  further 
compared  to  a  lamb  {fern.),  because  the  female  is  always  weaker 
than  the  male.  ^  His  altei'ed  countenance  makes  him  look  like 
one  who  has  been  long  confined  in  prison,  and  whose  continual 

'■■  Thalmud  of  Babylon,  Shahbath,  fol.  107 \ 


110  Fv.  MOSITKH    KOITEN    IB\    CKIRPIN.  [liii.  9- 

anxiety  whether  he  will  be  brought  out  to  execution,  has  caused 
his  complexion  to  change.  In  the  same  way,  he  is  like  one 
who  stands  at  the  bar  before  his  judges,  and  they  condemn 
him  to  death  so  that  his  features  alter  at  the  prospect.  Thus 
the  words  np7  OStJ'OtDI  "^^yo  mean  '  he  is  like  one  taken  out  of 
confinement,  and  from  the  place  of  judgment  (and  led  away 
to  execution).'  "IVV  is  to  detain,  or  confine :  and  so  l-^V  is  the 
place  where  men  are  detained  and  prevented  from  going  out : 
cf.  Judg.  xiii.  15,  I  Sam.  xxi.  8  (where  ivyj  means  that  Doeg 
was  detained  before  the  Lord  to  pray),  Jer.  xxxiii.  i,  xxxix.  15. 
nniB'''  signifies  to  tell,  as  Ps.  cxliii.  5 :  '  who  will  be  able  to  tell 
of  all  the  greatness  and  the  glory  which  will  be  shewn  to  his 
people  by  his  means  in  his  generation  ? '  the  expression  is 
hyjierbolical,  resembling  Gen.  xxi.  7.  For  he  is  cut  off,  etc.  The 
nature  of  this  Messiah  is  exceeding  wondrous :  it  is  composed 
of  two  contradictory  elements.  His  soul  is  'cut  off  from  the 
land  of  the  living ; '  in  other  words,  it  is  derived  from  the  living 
angels  who  exist  for  ever,  i.  e.  from  the  abstract  intelligences : 
these  form  the  sovirce  from  which  his  own  intelligence  emanates, 
and  gradually,  in  virtue  of  its  comprehensive  wisdom,  ascends 
to  an  elevation,  which,  as  we  have  explained  above,  none  else 
has  ever  attained.  His  body,  on  the  other  hand,  is  composed 
of  griefs  and  pains  and  sicknesses — of  grief /or  tlie  transgression 
and  affliction  of  his  people  (which  was  so  great  as  to  disfigure 
his  appearance),  and  of  pains  and  sicknesses  greater  than  those 
of  otiier  men.  And  it  is  an  indication  of  his  perfection  that 
he  does  not  care  for  the  pain  of  his  own  body ;  for  he 
recognises  its  proper  rank,  and  its  deficiencies,  in  this  nether 
world — a  world  which  has  no  permanence  and  continueth  not 
in  one  stay,  but  is  ever  changing  from  one  nature  to  another. 
Such  a  merciful  father  is  he  to  us  that,  as  he  sees  us  in  the 
misery  of  exile,  the  vigour  of  his  body  forsakes  him,  and  for 
our  sake  he  'enters  into  the  thickness  of  the  beam^'  to  grieve 

''  A  phrase  signifying  '  to  do  the  impossible.' 


-liii.  lo.]  R.  MOSHEH    KOIIEN    IBN    CRISPIN.  Ill 

for  ua  and  to  pray  for  us,  until  he  redeem  us  from  our  exile. 
And,  therefore,  all  that  hear  of  him,  or  know  him,  will  marvel 
at  him  exceedingly,  because  never  in  the  world  had  a  prophet 
or  wise  man  been  heard  of  who  was  compounded  of  two  natures 
such  as  these.     In  this  exalted  pei'fection  he  will  continue  till 
for  his  merits,  and  in  compassion  for  his  grief,  and  because  of 
his  wondrous  nature,   the  Lord    hastens  the  time  of  our  re- 
demption, according  to  the  words  which  I  have  explained,  'I 
the  Lord,  in  its  time,  will  speed   it,'  i.  e.  'when  its  time  ap- 
proaches, before  the  day  when  it  should  actually  ai-rive,  I  will 
hasten  its  advent.'     Thus  the  text  states  the  reason  why  none 
can  declare  his  generation,  because,  namely,  he  is  '  cut  off,'  or 
derived,  from  the  land  of  the  living  and  from  the  transgression  of 
my  people.     The  last  word  ID?  refers  to  'my  people  :'  *  from" the 
transgression  of  my  people,  (which  was)  a  blow  to  them,'  since 
in  consequence  of  it,  many  plagues  fell  upon  them.     ^  Here  it 
is  stated  what  these  plagues  were  :    many  of  the  just  and  pious 
were  slain,  and  those  who  buried  them  gave  or  assigned  them 
their  graves  with  the  tvicked.     And  you  can  think  of  no  heavier 
blow  to  fall  upon  my  people  than  that  they  should  be  buried 
'  with  the  wicked '  as  though  belonging  to  their  company ;  as  it 
is  said  of  Abner,  'Was  Abner  to  die  as  a  fool  dieth?'  (2  Sam. 
iii-  33-)     1*1  t^^  same  way  the  rich  are  spoken  of,  as  slain 
miserably  by  various  kinds  of  death,  and  afterwards  buried  in 
contempt  with  the  wicked,  neither  their  riches  nor  their  honour 
profiting  them  anything.     The  whole  phrase  will  thus  mean, 
that  the  grave  of  my  people  was  with  the  wicked,  and  that  the 
rich  also  among  them  were  assigned  at  their  death  a  burial- 
place  with  the  wicked  as  well.     And  all  this  was  inflicted  upon 
them  because  tliey  had  done  no  violence,  and  there  was  no  deceit- 
fidness  in  their  mouth.     '"The  reference  is  now  again  to  the 
King  Messiah,  of  whom  the  prophet  had  been  speaking  at  the 
beginning:    we  cannot,  he  says,  attribute  the  sicknesses  and 
pains,  which  befel  him  after  his  perfection  was  known  in  the 
world,  to  any  inherent  defect  in  himself;  they  are  the  chastise- 


112  K.  MOSIIEH    KOHEX    IBX    CRISPIN.  [liii.  1 1- 

ments  of  love  whercwitli  the  Lord  was  phased  to  bmise  him 
by  tlie  agency  of  sick)ie.ss  ^  (or  perliaps,  a)id  to  make  him  sick — 
vnn  being  written  defectively  for  Nvnn).  Where  mention  is 
made  of  '  the  Lord's  pleasure,'  we  cannot  arrive  at  the  full 
meaning ;  God's  own  will  none  but  himself  can  completely 
comprehend,  though  tve  attribute  the  pains  and  sickness 
spoken  of  to  this  cause,  because  we  cannot  credit  that  a  man 
should  ever  for  his  own  people,  or  even  for  his  sons,  be  suffi- 
ciently distressed  to  bring  them  upon  himself.  If  his  soul 
makes  itself  into  a  trespass-offering,  imj)lying  that  his  soul 
will  treat  itself  as  guilty,  and  so  receive  punishment  for  our 
trespasses  and  transgi-essions.  He  shall  see  seed,  etc. :  as 
though  the  Creator  said,  '  If  he  has  done  this  for  my  people, 
behold  his  reward  is  with  him,  he  shall  see  seed,  he  shall  lengthen 
days : '  in  opposition  to  what  the  world  thought  of  him,  who 
imagined  from  his  prostration  that  he  was  destined  to  have  no 
seed,  and  that  it  was  impossible  for  him  to  have  long  life,  the 
Creator,  whose  thoughts  are  not  as  our  thoughts,  promises  that 
'he  shall  see  seed,  and  prolong  his  days;'  he  will  restore  him 
to  the  days  of  his  youth,  and  he  will  give  him  his  seed  and 
lengthen  his  days.  And  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord,  lie  shall 
prosper  with  Ids  hand,  i.  e.  '  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord  is  that 
he  shall  pi'osper  in  all  the  work  of  his  hands : '  the  reward  for 
all  the  afflictions  which  he  imposed  upon  his  body  for  the 
Lord's  people  is,  that  he  will  recover  strength  and  vigour  so 
as  to  have  seed,  and  enjoy  long  life,  and  ^jrosper  in  whatever 
he  sets  his  hand  to.  This  verse  affords  a  cogent  reply  to  our 
opponents,  shewing  convincingly  that  the  Para^hah  does  not 
speak  of  God,  as  their  arguments  assert  that  it  does ;  even  if 
it  be  urged  that  God's  people  are  called  sons  (as  Deut.  xiv.  i), 
and  similarly  that  the  prophets'  disciples  are  called  the  sons  of 
the  prophets  (2  Kings  ii.  3  al.),  although  this  argument  might  be 
valid  if  the  same  term  sons  had  been  used  here  as  well,  it  is 
nevertheless   impossible   that    '  seed '    can    be    employed    with 

®  'bnn  being  taken  as  a  noun,  '  with  sickness.' 


-liii.il.]  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN    IBN    CRISPIN.  113 

reference  to  God,  for  God  has  no  seed.  Moreover,  the  ex- 
pression 'shall  prolong  liia  days'  evidently  has  reference  to  a 
limited  space  of  time  :  but  there  are  no  limits  to  God's  infinity ; 
and  had  the  prophet  been  speaking  of  God  he  must  have  said, 
'  He  will  endure  for  ever  and  ever'  (like  Ex.  xv.  i8,  Ps.  ix.  8, 
and  often  similarly) :  it  is,  however,  certain  that  the  Pai-ashah 
alludes  to  none  but  a  mortal  man,  born  beyond  reach  of  doubt 
of  human  parents.  '^  Because  of  the  labour  and  distress  which 
he  brought  upon  his  living  soul,  and  upon  his  body,  for  the 
sake  of  the  people  of  the  Lord,  he  ivill  see  all  prosperity  so  as 
to  be  satisfied  with  it.  By  his  hioidedye,  etc.  He  proceeds 
to  tell  of  his  high  perfection,  how  in  his  unfaltering  knowledge 
he  will  justify  tlie  ji'st,  and  stand  in  defence  of  the  truth, 
without  the  need  of  witnesses  or  proof,  solely  in  virtue  of  the 
truthfulness  of  clear  and  complete  perceptions.  And  my  servant 
will  do  this  D''31^,  i.  e.  before  tlte  eyes  of  the  mcmy,  viz.  Israel, 
of  whom  Isaiah  spoke  at  the  beginning  of  the  Parashah,  '  As 
many  were  astonished ;'  for  Israel  multiplied  and  were  more 
numerous  than  the  other  nations  (Ex.  i.  7,  Num.  x.  36).  And 
their  iniquities,  i.  e.  those  of  the  many,  of  Israel,  he  will  bear, 
and  will  atone  for  them  in  the  perfection  of  his  nature,  until 
their  sins  depart  from  them  and  they  are  left  guiltless. 
^^  Therefore,  etc.,  '  after  he  has  done  all  this  and  delivered  the 
multitudes  of  Israel,  /  will  allot  him  a  large  poi^tion  in  their 
midst:'  for  the  Creator  will  assign  him  a  portion  iu  the  land 
of  Israel,  as  our  Rabbis  say  {Bahlid  Baihra,  fol.  122*),  'The 
whole  land  of  Israel  will  be  divided  into  thirteen  portions.' 
In  the  same  place  it  is  explained  for  whom  the  thiiieenth  is 
intended,  viz.  for  the  prince  who  will  be  among  them,  as  it  is 
said  in  Ezekiel  (xlviii.  19)  that  there  wUl  be  a  portion  for  the 
prince,  etc. — a  verse  which  refers  to  the  King  Messiah.  And 
the  mighty,  i.  e.  the  mighty  nations,  Gog  and  ]\Iagog,  who  come 
to  attack  him,  he,  and  Israel  '  the  many,'  vMl  divide  as  spoil, 
because  he  j)oured  out  (Gen.  xxiv.  20)  Ms  soul  to  die,  i.  e. 
brought  it  '  nigh  to  the  gates  of  death '  in  consequence  of  the 

I 


114  R.  MOSIIEII    KOIIEN    IBN    CRISPIN.  [liii.  12. 

grief  and  pain  which  he  bore  for  Israel,  and  also,  the  prophet 
adds,  for  himself,  the  punishments  which  came  upon  him  being 
Buch  that  those  who  saw  liim  imagined  him  to  be  like  the 
transgressors  and  counted  him  among  them  :  all  this  befcl  him 
because  of  the  greatness  of  his  love  and  compassion  for  his 
people  Israel.  Yet  he  in  his  perfection  carried  the  sins  of 
Israel  the  many,  until  he  made  expiation  for  them  and  removed 
their  sins  from  off  them.  He  also  interceded  for  tlie  trans- 
gressors (i.  e.  for  Israel) :  these  words  explain  in  what  way  he 
'  carried  their  sins/  viz.  by  making  intercession  for  them.  yjQ 
means  to  'pray  or  entreat,  as  lix.  16,  Gen.  xxiii.  8,  Jer.  xxxvi.  25. 
This  prophecy  was  delivered  by  Isaiah  at  the  divine  command 
for  the  purpose  of  making  known  to  us  something  about  the 
nature  of  the  future  Messiah,  who  is  to  come  and  deliver  Israel, 
and  his  life  from  the  day  when  he  arrives  at  discretion  until 
his  advent  as  a  redeemer,  in  order  that  if  any  one  should  arise 
claiming  to  be  himself  the  Messiah,  we  may  reflect,  and  look 
to  see  whether  we  can  observe  in  him  any  resemblance  to  the 
traits  described  here  :  if  there  is  any  such  resemblance,  then 
we  may  believe  that  he  is  the  Messiah  our  righteousness ;  but 
if  not,  we  cannot  do  so. 

The  explanation  of  this  Parashah,  referring  to  the  Messiali 
sjieedily  to  be  revealed  in  our  own  days,  is  now  completed. 

Says  Sa'adyah  [Ibn  Danan],  the  scribe :  I  have  here  tran- 
scribed an  exposition  of  this  Parashah :  perhajis  an  answer  may 
be  found  in  it  against  the  hei'etics  who  interjiret  it  of  Jesus, 
It  is  my  intention  to  keep  myself  continually  at  the  doors  of 
the  learned;  and,  so  far  as  my  ability  can  command,  I  shall 
follow  the  saying  of  our  Eabbis,  '  And  know  now  how  to  reply 
to  EpicurusV  though  it  does  not  seem  to  me  to  be  right  or  per- 
missible to  apply  the  prophecy  to  the  King  Messiah  (for  reasons 
which  any  intelligent  man  will  easily  find  out) :  it  must,  in  fact, 
be  referred  either  to  Israel  as  a  whole,  or  to  Jeremiah. 

'  AbotK,  §  ii.  On  '  Epicurus,'  the  general  title  for  those  who  reject  and 
despise  the  Jewish  faith,  see  Buxtorf,  Lex.  s.  v. 


Hi.  13-liii.  4.]  K.  MOSIIEH    KOHEN.  115 

B. 

Says  the  Apostate:  Although  you  are  seeking  and  searching 
after  mc  to  refute  the  ai-guments  which  I  bring  against  you 
concerning  the  coming  of  Jesus  our  Messiah,  I  will  noAv  adduce 
some  clear  proofs  from  the  prophecy  of  Isaiah,  shewing  how  he 
is  come  and  how  he  underwent  great  sufferings,  and  was  after- 
wards condemned  to  death  for  the  redemption  of  his  creatures 
who  were  in  Gehenna,  and  how  he  saved  them  from  the  power 
of  their  well-known  adversary  [Satan]  (as  I  have  said  above),  into 
which  they  had  ikllen  in  consequence  of  the  'original'  sin  com- 
Tuitted  by  Adam  and  Eve,  wliicli  could  not  be  atoned  for  except 
by  the  agency  of  one  gi-eater  than  our  first  parent.  And  it  is 
impossible  that  there  can  be  any  greater  than  Adam  except 
Jesus  our  Messiah,  who  is  man  and  God.  If,  therefore,  you 
will  confess  the  truth,  you  will  have  no  valid  answer  to  the 
proofs  I  shall  bring  forward. 

LII.  ^^  The  fi.rst  verse  of  the  Parashah  your  learned  men  in 
the  Thalmud  expound  thus  :  '  He  will  be  higher  than  Abraham, 
more  exalted  than  Moses,  and  loftier  than  the  ministering 
angels.'  Who,  now,  is  greater  than  Abraham,  more  exalted 
than  Moses,  and  loftier  than  the  angels,  except  Jesus  our 
Messiah,  who  is  both  man  and  God  1  ^*  As  many,  etc. ;  i.  e. 
As  his  gi'eatness  was  wonderfiil,  so  marred  was  his  flesh  and 
his  form  from  the  sufferings  and  death  at  the  time  when  they 
crucified  him,  so  will  he  nile  over  many  nations,  and  kings 
will  close  their  mouths  at  him,  because  (as  was  indeed  the  fiict) 
the  miracles  and  wonders  ^A'hich  they  saw  him  perform  had 
never  been  told  them, 

LIII.  ^  unyiDK'?  is  to  be  taken  in  its  ordinary  sense.  -  He 
had  no  form,  and  we  esteemed  him  not,  for  he  was  despised  in 
the  eyes  of  the  Jews,  and  was  a  man  of  pains  and  known  to 
sickness ;  by  these  are  signified  the  sufferings  which  the  Jews 
inflicted  on  him.  ^God  himself,  then,  was  smitten  and  afflicted, 
viz.  by  bearing  our  iniquities  for  our  advantage.     *  Through  his 

I  2 


116  R.  MOSHEH   KOHEN.  [liii.  5- 

deatli,  the  original  sin,  in  consequence  of  which  [even]  the 
righteous  were  delivered  to  Geheinia,  was  healed  to  ua.  ^Be- 
fore he  came,  the  children  of  the  world  were  wandering  about 
like  sheep  without  a  shepherd  :  each  had  turned  after  his  own 
way,  to  do  what  was  right  in  his  own  eyes ;  they  were  like 
blind  men  groi)ing  for  a  wall  (Is.  lix.  lo).  But  the  Lord  laid 
iipon  him  tlie  iniquity  of  us  all,  he  was  delivered  up  to  death 
to  atone  for  our  sins  :  and  (ver.  6)  he  met  death  willingly  for 
the  redemption  of  our  souls  :  there  was  none  (ver.  7)  who  could 
discei'n  any  seed  which  came  from  him,  and  for  the  trans- 
gression of  my  people  death  fell  upon  him ;  lastly,  at  his 
crucifixion  (ver.  8),  two  malefactors  were  hung  beside  him. 
Now  see  in  what  way  this  whole  Parashah  from  beginning  to 
end  has  reference  to  Jesus  our  Messiah ;  for  you  cannot  deny 
that  every  single  word  in  it  was  fulfilled  in  him,  both  generally 
and  in  particular. 

The  author  answered :  You  think  in  your  herai;  that  none 
of  the  proofs  which  you  have  brought  foi-ward  to  shew  that 
the  Parashah  was  spoken  with  reference  to  Jesus  your  Messiah 
admit  of  any  answer;  but  do  not  the  portions  preceding  and 
following  it,  as  well  as  what  it  contains  itself,  make  your  reason- 
ing valueless,  and  prevent  its  standing  or  being  confirmed  1 

Again  the  author  answered  :  Do  not  condemn  me  if  I 
protract  my  reply  here  :  I  am  forced  to  do  so,  because  in  this 
Parashah  they  press  their  objections  upon  us  more  closely  than 
in  any  of  their  other  refutations ;  I  would  urge,  then,  the  following 
thoughts.  Do  not  the  preceding  verses  allude  to  the  gathering 
in  of  our  exiles  in  the  future  (lii.  12,  'For  not  in  haste,'  etc.),  and 
the  consolations  of  Jerusalem  ?  and  is  it  not  written  afterwards, 
'Rejoice,  O  barren  woman,'  etc.  (liv.  i,  2,  3-8)?  and  again, 
'This  is  as  the  waters  of  Noah,'  etc.  (liv.  9,  10)'?  in  the  middle, 
then,  the  prophet  describes  what  the  nations  will  say  of  Israel 
generally  at  the  time  when  this  gathering  takes  place,  ami  what 
the  nations  and  the  multitude  of  Israel  will  say  of  the  righteous 
in  particular,  when  they  see  them  invested  with  dominion  and 


Iii.i3-liii.r-]  R.  MOSIIEII    KOHEN.  117 

gi-eatness ;  for  then  they  will  '  be  astonished  at '  them,  because 
before  they  had  seen  them  despised  and  depressed  among  the 
peoples  (as  it  is  written,  xlix.  7),  but  now  'kings  will  be  their 
nursing  fathers,  and  queens  their  nursing  mothers'  (xlix.  23); 
and  at  that  time,  as  Daniel  writes  (xii.  3),  the  righteous  in 
particular  will  have  illimitable  greatness.  Such  is  the  simple 
and  literal  interpretation  of  the  Parashah. 

LII.  "il/y  servant.  This  is  said  of  each  individual  among 
the  just,  exactly  as  in  Jer.  xxx.  10,  xlvi.  27  f.,  also  Is.  xliv.  2  : 
in  the  same  way  the  prophet  says  here,  '  Behold  my  servant  will 
prosper'  (P'^St'"'  as  i  Sam.  xviii.  14).  '*A11  the  nations  were  in 
astonishment  and  wonder  at  the  depression  of  Israel  in  captivity, 
when  their  countenance  and  form  were  marred  beyond  those  of 
other  nations  :  for  when  any  one  of  you  wishes  to  indicate  that 
a  person  is  held  in  some  contempt,  he  calls  him  a  Jew.  ^^  As 
they  were  thus  depressed  and  despised,  and  as  many  marvelled 
at  their  prostration,  so  will  they  rule  over  many  nations :  like 
a  man  sprinkling  blood  with  his  finger  who  can  scatter  it  in 
whatever  direction  he  pleases,  so  will  they  do  what  they  please 
with  many  nations.  At  lain  kings  will  shut  their  mouths,  i.  e. 
in  astonishment,  when  they  see  all  their  dignity  and  dominion ; 
for  lohat  had  not  been  told  them  have  they  seen,  viz.  such  greatness 
as  they  had  never  heard  of  as  appertaining  to  any  nation  before. 

LIU.  ^  All  Israel  were  continually  smitten  and  afflicted  among 
the  Gentiles  :  and  the  more  they  were  afflicted,  the  more  were 
they  despised  in  their  eyes  until  they  hid  their  faces  so  as  no 
longer  to  gaze  upon  them. — Up  to  this  point  it  is  the  Gentiles 
who  speak :  what  follows  is  supposed  to  be  spoken  by  the 
multitude  of  Israelites  as  they  look  upon  the  exaltation  of  the 
rigliteous.  *  All  the  sufferings  and  sicknesses,  they  Avill  say, 
which  we  ought  to  have  borne  for  our  iniquities,  have  been 
borne  by  the  righteous  for  our  sake.  He  teas  D\"l?N  nsTO,  i.  e. 
smitten  froni  or  by  God;  cf.  Dent.  xxi.  23,  Job  i.  16,  Prov» 
XXV.  2 ;  in  all  these  passages  and  many  besides  the  genitive 
signifies  from  God.     ^  This  verse  (as  I  have  explained  above) 


118  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN.  [liii.  6- 

appHes  to  each  individual  rigliteous  man  :  by  the  stripes  and 
sufferings  which  each  bore,  atonement  was  made  for  all  Israel. 
*  The  transgressors  in  Israel  are  here  represented  as  saying. 
All  we  like  sheep  have  gone  astray  after  '  the  obstinacy  of  our 
own  heart ;'  but  the  blow  and  the  suflferings  which  ought  to 
have  come  upon  us,  have  been  all  laid  by  the  Creator  upon 
him  :  for  the  righteous  are  always  involved  in  the  iniquity  of 
the  generation  [in  which  they  live].  ''A  description  of  the 
pious  Israelites  among  the  Gentiles :  oppressed  and  afflicted, 
many  of  them  were  slain,  and  others  ill-used  by  condemnation 
and  persecution,  and  men  were  devising  against  them  to  blot 
out  their  name  from  the  world,  except  for  the  mercy  of  God 
who  would  not  abandon  them  to  their  power,  and  to  the  ten'or 
of  the  kings,  as  it  is  written,  '  For  thy  sake  are  we  slain  all  the 
day  long,  though  we  have  not  dealt  falsely  with  thy  covenant ' 
(Ps.  sliv.  23,  18)  :  this  fidelity  is  alluded  to  in  the  words,  'Ae 
opened  not  his  mouih,^  viz.  for  the  purpose  of  casting  forth 
words  of  impiety  against  heaven.  *  All  day  long  the  Gentiles 
kept  them  in  confinement,  or  condemned  them  by  cruel  sen- 
tences :  who,  he  continues,  can  tell  of  all  the  weary  vexations 
and  sufferings  which  each  generation  of  them  endured  in  exile 
for  the  saci-edness  of  Heaven  ?  how  many  of  the  righteous  were 
murderously  slain,  and  cut  oj^  in  the  midst  of  their  days  !  for 
the  strokes  which  ought  to  have  come  upon  us  for  our  transgres- 
sions fell  upon  them  !  ID?  is  plural,  as  by  the  help  of  God 
I  shall  explain  further  on.  *  The  righteous  suffered  various 
forms  of  death,  in  accordance  with  the  manner  in  which  the 
wicked  kill  those  who  are  judicially  condemned,  and  whose  only 
burial  is  to  be  cast  forth  for  the  dogs.  If  you  ask,  Is  it  not 
plain  from  the  expression  his  grave  in  this  verse  that  they 
buried  them?  how  then  do  you  assert  that  they  were  not 
buried  %  I  will  shew  you  a  verse  like  this  [in  which  the  word 
burial  is  used  improperly],  Jer.  xxii.  18,  where  it  is  said  of 
Jehoialdm  that  he  'shall  be  buried  with  the  burial  of  an  ass, 
drawn  and  cast  forth  beyond  tho  gates  of  Jerusalem.'     Or  we 


-liii.  12.]  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN.  119 

may  interpret  the  words  differently,  and  suppose  that  the 
Gentiles  treated  the  murdered  Israelites  as  it  is  the  custom 
to  treat  malefactors  condemned  to  death  by  a  judicial  sentence ; 
in  other  words,  that  instead  of  burying  them  in  the  sepulchres 
of  their  fathers,  they  threw  them  by  themselves  on  to  dunghills, 
in  order  that  they  might  not  render  the  ground  pestilential 
and  offensive.  And  with  the  rich  in  his  death  :  the  righteous 
Israelites  tlius  murdered  were  treated  like  the  rich  and  wicked  man 
who  dies  without  repenting  during  his  lifetime,  and  every  one  then 
curses  both  him  and  his  age ;  so  they  did  to  the  Israelites,  and 
therefore  it  is  said.  With  the  rich  in  his  death — comparing  Israel 
to  the  rich  in  his  death,  and  not  in  his  burial,  for  the  rich  are 
mostly  buried  in  pomp.  And  so,  in  spite  of  their  having  done 
no  violence,  they  inflicted  on  them  all  the  hai'm  possible,  which 
it  was  in  the  power  of  their  hands  to  effect.  ^"Yet  these 
righteous  ones  in  Israel  were  not  bruised  with  sufferings  and 
sickness  except  at  the  pleasure  of  the  Creatoi",  in  order  that, 
firstly,  retribution  might  be  exacted  from  them  for  the  few 
iniquities  which  they  had  committed ;  secondly,  that  they  might 
bear  the  sins  of  those  who  transgi'essed  in  Israel  (because,  as  we 
learn  from  the  case  of  Josiah  who,  though  perfectly  righteous, 
was  slain  in  the  iniquity  of  his  own  generation,  the  righteous  are 
implicated  in  the  sin  of  their  own  age) ;  and,  thirdly,  that  they 
might  attain  futui*e  greatness  and  dignity  in  the  present  world  in 
the  eyes  of  the  Gentiles,  and  also  as  their  'exceeding  great  reward' 
in  the  world  to  come.  Elsewhere,  also,  the  prophet  speaks 
(Amos  iii.  2)  of  those  whom  the  Lord  honours  and  cares  for 
as  being  '  visited ; '  and  similarly  Solomon  says  (Prov.  iii.  1 2), 
'  Whom  the  Lord  loveth,  he  correcteth.'  If  his  soul,  etc. ;  i.  e. 
If  the  righteous  have  suffered  punishment  as  though  there  were 
guilt  in  their  souls,  to  compensate  for  this  they  will,  each  one  of 
them,  see  seed,  etc. ;  ^^  and  in  return  for  the  travail  of  his  soul, 
and  because  he  bea7's  their  iniquities,  each  shall  see  and  he 
satisfied,  Qtc.  ^'^Then,  because  of  all  this,  /  will  give  him  a 
goodly  jjortion  out  of  the  spoil  of  many,  and  the  mighty  he 


120  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN.  [liii.  I2. 

shall  divide  as  spoil,  viz.  all  the  nations  who  will  advance  in 
battle  (Zech.  xiv.  2)  against  Jerusalem,  the  people  of  Gog  and 
Magog,  whom  they  will  '  spoil  and  plunder '  (as  is  described  in 
Ezek.  xxxix.  10),  because  he  poured  out  his  soul  to  die — how 
often,  namely,  did  the  Israelites  resign  themselves  to  death 
for  the  sake  of  the  Holy  Name  I  And  he  was  mimbered  with 
the  transgressors :  for  the  pious  in  Israel  were  punished  and 
treated  as  offenders.  And  made  intercession  for  transgressors  : 
in  their  death  they  atoned  for  the  iniquities  of  the  many,  and  in 
their  lives  entreated  for  mercy  upon  the  transgressors,  although 
oppressed  by  them ;  as  we  may  see  from  the  case  of  David,  who 
says  with  reference  to  those  who  were  seeking  his  hurt,  '  Instead 
of  my  love,  they  hate  me,  but  I  give  myself  up  to  prayer ; '  and, 
*  As  for  me,  when  they  were  sick,  my  clothing  was  sackcloth,'  etc. 
(Ps.  cix.  4,  XXXV.  13).  Here  then  you  have  a  series  of  clear 
proofs  that  the  whole  of  this  Parashah,  from  beginning  to  end, 
refers  to  the  recompense  of  good  with  which  the  Creator  Avill  in 
the  future  reward  Israel  for  the  chastisement  and  stripes  endured 
at  the  hands  of  the  Gentiles  in  this  world  :  the  honour  and 
greatness  which  he  will  then  give  them  to  inherit  will  be  such 
that  all  the  nations,  with  the  i-est  of  the  mass  of  the  Israelites, 
will  be  astonished  at  their  dignity  and  rank,  as  it  is  written 
(Dan.  xii.  3) ;  while  even  the  transgressors  among  them  will 
exclaim  that  the  righteous  bore  all  these  sufferings  and  persecu- 
tion in  the  present  world  on  account  of  their  iniquities,  that  by 
those  sufferings  Israel's  guilt  was  atoned  for,  that  a  redeemer 
would  come  to  them  for  their  sake,  seeing  that  they  were  ever 
praying  to  the  Ci'eator  and  entreating  for  mercy  on  behalf  of  the 
transgressors  in  Israel.  And  this  is  the  simple,  literal  sense 
borne  by  this  Parashah. 

Your  own  position,  on  the  contrary,  which  affirms  that  the 
Parashah  alludes  throughout  to  Jesus  your  Messiah,  is  un- 
tenable in  ever  so  many  respects.  Did  I  not  point  out  to  you 
above,  how  immediately  before  the  Parashah  begins  (Hi.  12), 
the  prophet  had  predicted  the  gathering  together  of  our  exiles. 


liii.  12.]  R.  MOSHEH    KOIIEN.  121 

and  how  at  its  conclusion  he  at  once  commences  to  address 
consolations  to  Jerusalem,  telling  her  how  the  Creator  will 
cause  Israel  to  dwell  in  her  midst  as  at  the  beginning  (liv. 
I,  3,  etc),  while  in  the  intermediate  portion  he  makes  mention 
of  the  greatness  and  dignity  which  will  at  that  time  acciiie  to 
the  nation  ?  And  if  this  be  so,  then  are  you  building  the 
foundations  of  your  argument  upon  an  unsound  basis ;  and  as 
soon  as  the  foundation,  having  no  solidity  or  substance,  is  torn 
up,  the  house  built  upon  it  will  fall  to  pieces.  Now  are  not 
the  very  first  words  of  the  Pai'ashah,  '  Behold  my  servant  will 
prosper?'  how  then  can  you  assert  that  this  is  said  of  your 
Messiah,  and  not  be  ashamed  to  call  your  God  a  '  servant  ? ' 
Does  not  your  Gospel  bear  witness  that  the  Father,  the  Son, 
and  the  Spirit  are  three  in  Pereon,  but  one  God  in  Substantia, 
Potentia,  and  Habitus  ?  how  then  can  you  make  the  King  of 
kings,  even  the  Holy  One,  into  a  servant  ?  And  if  you  reply 
that  he  was  a  sei-vant  during  the  time  that  he  took  the  form  of 
a  man,  and  that  it  was  after  his  death  that  he  was  made  God 
and  King,  is  not  then  the  verse  fulfilled  in  him  which  says, 
'  Beneath  three  things  the  earth  trembleth  ....  beneath  a  servant 
when  he  becometh  king '  (Prov.  xxx.  21  f.)  ?  Moreover,  you 
attribute  to  him  change  and  accident,  such  as  are  not  found  in 
the  Creator,  as  it  is  written,  '  I  am  the  Lord,  I  change  not ' 
(Mai.  iii.  6).  In  the  same  way  you  cannot  bring  him  under 
the  definition  of  '  accident,'  because  God  belongs  to  the  category 
of  '  substance.'  Thus  the  veiy  outset  of  your  argument  refutes 
all  the  proofs  which  follow.  To  continue,  however.  You  said 
that  the  words,  '  Thou  art  fairer  than  the  children  of  men,'  etc., 
have  reference  to  him :  but  now  you  assert  the  reverse,  ap- 
pealing to  the  words  'he  had  no  form"'  etc.,  and  'known  to 
sickness,'  a  phrase  implying  that  he  was  a  sufferer  all  his  life- 
time. It  is  said  also  that  he  was  'smitten  of  God  :'  but  if  he 
was  God  himself,  how  did  God  smite  him  1  and  if  you  answer 
that  the  words  mean  'God,  smitten  and  aflflicted,' viz.  at  the  cruci- 
fixion, are  you  not  attributing  to  your  God  something  accursed  ? 


122  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN.  [liii.  12. 

for  it  is  written,  '  He  that  is  banged  is  accursed  of  God '  (Deut. 
xxi.  23).  'And  his  generation  who  can  telH'  You  say  that 
this  means  there  is  no  one  who  can  discern  any  seed  sprung 
from  him :  here  your  own  mouth  shall  condemn  you,  and  not  I ; 
for  it  is  written  of  him  immediately  afterwards,  that  '  he  shall 
see  seed.^  The  word  dor,  however,  which  you  explain  '  genera- 
tion,' does  not  signify  *  seed,'  but  is  used  to  denote  the  men 
belonging  to  any  particular  period,  as  Qoh.  i.  4  (the  men  of  each 
age  pass  away,  and  are  succeeded  by  those  belonging  to  the 
next),  Deut.  i.  35,  Ps.  Ixxii.  5,  and  often.  Again,  if,  as  you 
say,  he  rose  again  the  third  day,  and  ascended  up  into  heaven, 
and  is  equal  with  the  Father,  and  lives  for  ever  and  ever — for 
you  say  that  he  is  '  very  God ' — how  is  it  that  he  was  cut  off 
from  the  land  of  the  living,  i.  e.  from  the  land  of  gloiy,  which 
is  similarly  styled  the  '  laud  of  the  living'  in  Ps.  cxvi.  9  I  Again, 
at  the  end  of  the  verse,  for  )u?  (which  is  plural,  Lam.  i.  22), 
Isaiah  ought  to  have  used  the  singular  \?  :  and  if  you  reply  that 
in  adopting  the  plural  he  means  to  allude  to  the  manhood  and 
the  Godhead  of  your  Messiah  (which  you  call  his  humanity  and 
divinity),  you  destroy  your  own  argument,  because  it  is  a  great 
point  in  your  religion  that  the  flesh  only,  and  not  the  Godhead, 
endured  sufferings  and  death.  The  next  verse  also  nullifies  your 
assertion,  that  he  came  of  his  own  accord,  and  by  his  own 
pleasure,  to  meet  death  for  the  redemption  of  his  creatures :  if 
this  had  been  the  case,  the  prophet  must  have  said,  '  Yet  he  was 
pleased  to  crush  himself;'  but  it  is  plain,  on  the  contraiy,  that 
the  'pleasure'  was  not  in  him,  but  in  the  Creator.  And,  if  he 
is  God,  how  can  you  attribute  any  'trespass'  to  him?  If  you 
say  that  the  phrase,  '  to  make  his  soul  a  trespass-offering,'  means 
merely  that  he  was  put  to  death,  'body 'or  'flesh'  ought  to 
have  stood  in  the  place  of  '  soul,'  because  you  yourselves  main- 
tain that  his  soul  was  the  Godhead  within  him,  which  in  this 
case  must  have  suffered  death ;  and  if  you  say  that  DtJ'K ,  after 
the  manner  of  Scripture,  signifies  the  '  sin '  itself,  then  his 
Godhead  is  no  longer  free  from  sin.     Again,  how  are  the  words 


liii.  12.]  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN.  123 

'  he  shall  see  seed '  fulfilled  in  him  1  where  is  the  seed  which  he 
saw  1  If  the  sense  be  that  you  yourselves,  being  his  children, 
are  the  '  seed '  spoken  of,  then  the  prophet  ought  to  have  said 
*  children '  and  not  '  seed  : '  for  the  word  seed  is  only  used  in  its 
literal  and  primary  signification,  of  what  in  your  language  is 
termed  esperma;  and  how,  in  this  sense,  can  your  God  be  said  to 
have  seed  ?  INIoreover,  in  what  way  did  he  *  prolong  his  days,' 
when  you  yourselves  assert  that  he  was  put  to  death  when  but 
thirty-three  years  old,  when,  therefore,  he  had  not  reached  the 
half  of  his  days  1  If  it  be  supposed  to  be  his  Godhead,  which, 
living  for  ever  and  ever,  'prolongs  its  days,'  it  must  be  recol- 
lected that  '  length  of  days '  is  an  expression  applicable  only  to 
flesh  and  blood,  which  lives  for  many  days,  and  then  dies,  as  it 
is  written,  '  That  he  may  prolong  days  in  Ms  kingdom '  (Deut. 
xvii.  2o) ;  and  again,  upon  the  earth  (xi.  9) ;  and  in  the  law  about 
birds'  nests,  xxii.  7,  cf.  Josh.  xxiv.  31  :  in  all  these  passages, 
as  it  seems,  the  expression  is  used  only  of  persons  liable  to 
death,  but  how  can  you  say  of  him  who  lives  for  ever,  that  he 
will  prolowj  his  days  1  And  from  the  words,  '  the  pleasure  of 
the  Lord  shall  prosper  in  his  hand,'  it  is  plain  that  he  was  not 
the  Lord  himself.  Nor  can  ver.  1 1  refer  to  him :  you  yourselves 
declare  that  he  never  endured  travail  or  pain  :  it  was  only  his 
flesh  that  suffered,  and  not  the  soul,  which  you  say  is  the  seat 
of  his  divinity.  And  if  it  is  true  that  the  next  words  were  spoken 
of  your  Messiah,  when  was  it  that  he  '  divided  spoil  with  the 
many?'  If  it  was  while  he  was  in  the  flesh,  in  the  form  of  a 
man,  tell  me  what  was  the  battle  that  he  fought,  and  who  were 
the  'many'  and  the  'mighty'  with  whom  he  divided  it?  you 
will  not  find  it  so  stated  anywhere,  either  in  the  Old  Testament 
or  in  the  Gospel.  And  if  you  say  that  it  was  after  his  death, 
when  he  was  God,  that  he  divided  spoil,  how  can  you  use  such 
an  expression  of  God?  and  who  could  have  'divided  him  his 
portion,'  because,  by  your  arguments,  he  is  himself  God  ?  The 
Creator  certainly  putteth  into  possession  and  maketh  rich,  and 
giveth  in  abundance  and  divideth  spoil  to  a  man  as  it  seemeth 


124  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN.  [liii.  iz, 

right  iu  his  eyes,  but  how  could  you  say  that  the  Creator  sup- 
ports or  assists  himself  by  such  a  process  ?  woe  to  the  man  who 
believes  at  all  iu  a  thing  like  this,  for  there  is  no  intelligent 
person  in  the  world  who  can  tolerate  it.  And  how  can  you 
assert  that  Jesus  '  poured  out  his  soul  to  die,'  or  met  death 
voluntarily  and  without  any  coercion,  for  the  redemption  of  his 
creatures,  when  your  own  Gospel  testifies  the  reverse  ?  for  it 
says  that  he  was  in  fear  and  dread  of  death,  Tristis  anima  mea, 
luctav'U  [1]  et  timuit  de  morte;  and  again,  in  the  same  place,  that 
he  prayed  to  his  Father,  saying,  '  Father,  let  this  death  pass  from 
me,  yet  not  my  will  but  thine  be  done'  (Mat.  xxvi.  37-39),  as 
though  it  were  not  in  his  own  power  to  cause  it  to  do  so. 
Besides,  at  the  time  of  his  crucifixion,  it  is  said  in  the  Gospel 
that  he  was  'grieved  even  unto  death,'  saying,  'My  God,  my  God, 
why  hast  thou  forsaken  me  % '  etc. :  how  then  can  you  maintain 
that  he  gave  up  his  soul  to  die  voluntarily  ?  How,  in  fact,  can 
you  say  that  liis  soul  died  at  all,  when,  according  to-  your  creed, 
it  was  not  his  soul  (i.  e.  his  Divinity)  wliich  was  afHicted  by 
death,  but  only  his  body  ?  And,  lastly,  as  to  the  Haggadah, '  He 
shall  be  higher  than  Abraham,  more  exalted  than  Moses,  and 
loftier  than  the  ministering  angels,'  to  which  you  refer,  alleging 
that  such  titles  of  rank  and  dignity  cannot  be  predicated  of  any 
man  in  the  world  except  Jesus,  who  was  both  God  and  man, 
although  you  adduced  it  at  the  beginning,  I  have  postjioned 
rcjjlying  to  it  till  now,  because  I  thought  it  of  the  highest 
importance  to  answer  you  fii'st  on  the  point  of  the  literal  sense  of 
the  prophecj'^,  since  the  Haggadah,  as  the  name  implies,  Romance 
in  French,  does  not  offer  any  basis  for  a  reply.  And  had  I 
Avished  it,  I  should  not  have  answered  it  at  all :  because  our 
doctors  say,  Men  do  not  reply  to  a  Haggadah ;  for  what  we 
believe  in  the  Thalmud  to  contain  the  basis  of  our  faith,  are  such 
ordinances  as  those  relating  to  marriage  [Qiddushin),  divorce 
(Gittin),  the  Levirate  (Y'bhdmoth),  with  the  rest  of  the  ritual 
regarding  clean  and  unclean,  etc.,  which  has  been  laid  down  for 
us  by  the  llabbis ;  these,  therefore,  we  are  all  bound  to  observe 


liii.  12.]  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN.  125 

according  to  their  prescription,  because  at  their  mouth  we  live. 
These  alone  constitute  the  Thalmud,  the  basis  of  our  belief :  and 
this  Halachah  has  been  fixed  by  the  most  famous  Rabbis,  after 
rejieated  and  minute  discussion,  in  accordance  with  the  opinion 
which  seemed  to  be  most  strongly  supported  by  clear  and  con- 
vincing proofs.  Tlie  Haggadahs  of  the  Rabbis,  on  the  contx^ary, 
it  is  well  known  that  we  do  not  use  in  the  same  way,  because 
each  of  these  expresses  simply  the  opinion  of  an  individual,  who 
would  sometimes,  for  examjile,  tell  his  disciples  a  Haggadah  to 
amuse  them;  at  other  times,  if  they  Avere  sleepy,  would  recite 
them  some  strange  story  to  rouse  them  up.  Thus  we  hear  that 
while  Rabbi  [Yehudah],  the  Saint,  was  once  expounding  to  his 
pui)ils,  some  of  them  being  asleep,  he  said  to  them  in  a  loud 
voice.  There  once  lived  a  woman  in  Egypt  who  boi'e  sixty 
ni}Tiads  in  her  womb :  upon  hearing  this  marvel,  they  at  once 
awoke,  exclaiming,  0  master,  how  was  that  possible  1  He 
replied,  Jochdbed  bore  Moses,  who  was  reckoned  as  equivalent 
to  all  Israel,  and  Israel  numbered  sixtj^  myi-iads.  Upon  other 
occasions  the  teachei',  wishing  to  enunciate  some  doctrine  in 
philosophy,  but  not  to  proclaim  it  publicly  to  the  world  at  large, 
would  express  it  in  the  form  of  a  Haggadah  or  proverb  (as  in  the 
book  Kalilah  and  Dimnah  "),  in  order  that  any  other  wise  man 
reading  it  might  understand  its  imjiort,  and  that  the  multitude 
might  be  amused  by  it,  regarding  it  as  a  romance  :  in  fact,  this 
was  the  design  of  king  Solomon  in  the  Song  of  Songs.  At 
other  times,  again,  the  master  would  affirm  something  hyper- 
bolical, which  could  not  possibly  have  occuiTcd,  being  preter- 
natural, as  in  the  story  about  'Og,  king  of  Bashan,  which  is  as 
follows  :  'Og  said.  The  camp  of  the  Israelites  measures  three 
parasangs,  I  will  take  up  a  rock  of  the  same  size,  and  cast  it 
upon  them.  So  he  uprooted  a  rock  covering  three  parasangs, 
and  held  it  over  his  head  with  the  intention  of  flinging  it  at 

"  The  title  of  the  Arabic  translation  of  the  famous  collection  of  Sanskrit 
fables  called  the  Pai'trliatantra :  see  Max  Miiller,  Chips,  etc.,  ii.  p.  230  ;  or, 
in  greater  detail,  the  Introduction  to  Th.  Benfey's  translation  (Leipz.  1859). 


126  R.  MOSHEII    KOHEN.  [IHi.  I2. 

tlietn.  The  ants,  however,  came  and  ate  a  hole  through  the 
rock  so  that  it  fell  down  upon  liis  neck,  and  upon  his  attempting 
to  throw  it  off,  it  broke  his  teeth  :  this  is  that  which  is  >vritten 
(Ps. iii.  8),  'The  teeth  of  the  wicked  thou  hast  broken'  (where 
for  n"i3ty  hast  hrohen,  read  nDSltJ'  hast  caused  to  Itang  down). 
How,  now,  is  it  possible  to  accept  this  Haggadah  in  its  literal 
sense  %  there  is  no  one  in  the  whole  world  so  simple  as  to  believe 
that  any  man  born  could  pluck  up  a  mountain  extending  over 
three  pai'asangs,  and  raise  it  above  his  head.  We  can  only 
suppose,  therefore,  one  of  two  things.  We  may  suppose,  firstly, 
that  the  author  of  this  story  sjioke  hyperbolically :  'Og  may 
possibly,  for  the  purpose  of  killing  some  of  the  Israelites, 
have  taken  up  some  huge  stone,  although  not  so  large  as 
the  twentieth  of  a  pai'asang,  and  flung  it  at  them :  even 
then,  however,  the  hjperbole  would  be  excessive.  In  the 
same  way  our  Rabbis  tell  us  that  in  both  the  Law,  the 
Prophets,  and  the  Writings,  hyperbolical  passages  are  to  be 
found,  which  cannot  be  interpi-eted  literally :  thus  in  the  Law 
we  read  of  'cities  huilt  up  to  heaven'  (Deut.  i.  28);  in  the 
Prophets,  how  'the  earth  was  cleft  at  the  voice  of  them' 
(l  Kings  i.  40);  in  the  Writings,  that  'the  whole  city  was 
moved  at  them'  (Ruth  i.  19).  Similarly,  also,  in  the  Thalmud, 
in  the  account  of  the  veil  of  the  Temple,  w^e  read  how  300 
priests  used  to  wash  it  [Thamid,  fol.  29  ^-b) ;  and  we  hear  besides 
of  the  enormous  size  of  the  golden  vine  which  Herod  placed  in 
the  sanctuary,  and  of  the  apple-tree  which  stood  in  the  midst 
of  the  altar,  respecting  which  there  is  a  hyperbolical  saying  by 
Rabba.  In  Bahhd  Bathra  Rabba  says,  I  once  saw  a  frog  as 
large  as  Acra  Hagroniae  c.  How  large  was  Acra  Hagroniae  % 
As  large  as  sixty  houses.  But  a  serpent  came  and  swallowed 
up  the  frog,  and  then  a  she-raven  came  and  swallowed  up  the 
serpent,  after  which  she  flew  away  and  settled  on  a  tree.  Come, 
consider  how  great  must  have  been  the  strength  of  this  tree. 

<-'  See  Neubauer,  Geogr.  du  Talmud,  p.  347. 


liii.  12.]  R.  MOSHEH    KOHEN.  127 

Again,  Rabba,  the  grandson  of  Hannah,  said  :  Once  upon  a 
time,  as  we  were  travelling  on  board  ahip,  the  ship  was  for 
three  days  and  three  nights  between  the  two  fins  of  a  fish, — 
the  fish  moving  against  the  wind,  and  the  shii^  with  it.  If  you 
think  that  it  did  not  go  fast,  listen  to  what  R.  Dimi  said  :  We 
went  sixty  pai'asangs  during  the  time  it  takes  to  boil  an  egg ; 
and  a  horseman  having  shot  an  arrow,  the  ship  kept  ahead  of 
it.  Another  story  by  the  same  Rabba  is  this :  We  were  once 
journeying  on  shipboard,  when  we  saw  again  a  fish,  in  the  ear 
of  which  a  small  insect  had  settled  :  the  fish  died,  and  was 
thrown  on  shore  by  the  sea :  it  then,  firstly,  laid  waste  sixty 
cities ;  next,  sixty  cities  ate  of  it ;  and,  lastly,  sixty  cities  preserved 
it  in  salt,  and  from  the  ball  of  its  eye  extracted  three  hundred 
flasks  of  oil;  when,  after  a  twelve-month,  we  came  there  again, 
we  found  that  its  bones  had  been  sawn  up,  in  order  to  build 
with  them  sixty  cities.  And  there  are  many  Haggadahs  such 
as  these.  Or,  secondly,  it  is  possible  that  in  the  Haggadah  alluded 
to,  the  design  of  its  author  may  have  been  to  hint  at  some  other 
meaning  :  it  is  said,  for  example,  that  '  Og  was  Eliezer  Abra- 
ham's sei'vant,  and  we  may  suppose  that  he  was  desirous  of 
going  to  fight  against  Israel,  trusting  in  the  merits  of  the  thi-ee 
patriarchs,  who  are  called  mountains,  as  in  Micah  vi.  2,  '  Hear, 
O  moimtains,  the  contention  of  the  Lord ; '  and  that  the  prayers 
of  Israel  are  likened  to  ants,  because  their  power  lies  in  their 
mouth  and  is  weak  elsewhere,  while  the  merits  of  'Og  were 
owing  to  the  service  which  he  had  done  to  the  patriarchs.  And 
in  the  same  way,  the  language  of  our  wise  men  may  be  no  less 
hyperbolical,  when  they  say.  He  will  be  higher  than  Abraham, 
more  exalted  than  Moses,  and  loftier  than  the  angels  :  they 
may  mean  to  imply  that  the  elevation  and  dignity  of  the  just 
in  Israel,  in  the  days  of  the  Messiah,  will  be  so  immeasurably 
great  that,  hj^perbolically,  it  can  be  spoken  of  in  these  terms. 

And  since  you  have  adduced  a  proof  from  the  sayings  of  our 
wise  men  of  blessed  memory,  I  also  will  adduce  one  from  the 
same  source,  to  shew  that  this  Haggadah  refers  to  the  righteous 


1.28 


B.  MOSHEH    KOHEN.  [Hii.  r2. 


in  Israel  {Sctnliedrin,  fol.  93a).  Says  R.  'Acha,  The  righteous 
are  greater  tlian  the  ministering  angels  ;  this  is  clear  froni 
the  verse  of  the  Law,  'Antl  he  wrestled  with  the  angel  and 
prevailed'  (Hos.  xii.  5,  of.  Gen.  xxxii.  29).  We  may  ac- 
cordingly reasonably  infer,  that  the  dignity  of  the  righteous  is 
superior  to  that  of  the  angels,  because,  man  having  been  created 
out  of  the  four  elements,  the  evil  imagination  originating  in 
matter  and  the  affections  of  the  animal  soul  shew  themselves 
within  him :  he,  however,  subdues  his  imagination,  and  keeps 
his  desires  in  subjection,  fortifying  and  strengthening  his 
intelligence  against  the  material  element  in  his  nature,  and 
devoting  himself  to  intellectual  study  and  the  service  of  his 
Creator.  Now  is  not  the  righteous  man  who  acts  in  this  way 
greater  than  the  angels  1  for  the  angels  are  not  made  of  matter, 
and  there  is  no  cause  for  surprise  in  their  being  free  from  sin. 
The  same  Rabbi  appeals  afterwards  to  the  prophecy  of  Zechariah 
(xii.  7,  8),  who  says  similarly,  '  The  house  of  David  shall  be  as 
God,  as  the  angel  of  the  Lord  before  them.'  You  have  now,  in 
this  verse,  a  confii-mation  of  the  Haggadah  which  says  they  will 
be  '  loftier  than  the  angels  ; '  and  also  pi'oofs  from  the  Thalmud, 
as  well  as  by  logical  reasoning,  that  both  it  and  the  Parashah 
under  discussion,  refer  to  the  exaltation  and  honour  which  will 
accrue  to  Israel  in  the  time  of  our  Messiah,  whereas  your  own 
arguments  are  left  without  anything  to  rest  on.    . 

Says  the  transcriber  :  Although  all  these  arguments  are  clear 
to  him  who  understands,  and  are  sufficient  as  a  I'cply  to  Epicurus, 
I  see  that  the  old  fathers  have  still  left  space  for  any  man  of  an 
intelligent  and  an  inquiring  mind  to  gain  renown  in.  For, 
with  respect  to  this  Haggadah,  I  feel  there  is  something 
attractive  and  satisfactory  in  the  explanation  given  by  the 
greatest  among  the  wise  men  of  our  nation,  and  one  whose 
name  is  known  in  Israel,  the  wise  and  perfect  Don  Isaac 
Abarbanel :  I  think,  therefore,  that  now  is  the  time  to  mention 
it  here,  in  order  that  '  he  that  i-eads  niny  run  thiough  it.'  It  is 
as  follows  [see  p.  165]. 


XXV.     R.  SH'LOMOH  ASTRUC. 

An  Exposition  of  the  Parashah,  'Lo,  ray  servant  shall  prosper,' 
hy  the  holy  En  SKlomoh  Astruc. 

Lll.^^J/y  servant  shall  prosper,  or  be  truly  intelligent,  heeause 
by  intelligence  man  is  really  man — it  is  intelligence  which  makes 
a  man  what  he  is.  And  the  prophet  calls  the  King  Messiah 
my  servant,  speaking  as  one  who  sent  him.  Or  he  may  call  the 
whole  people  my  servant,  as  he  says  above  my  people  (lii.  6) : 
when  he  speaks  of  the  people,  the  King  Messiah  is  included  in 
it;  and  when  he  speaks  of  the  King  Messiah,  the  people  is 
comprehended  with  him.  What  he  says  then  is,  that  my 
servant  the  King  Messiah  will  prosper.  Our  Rabbis  declare 
that  he  will  be  higher  than  Abraham,  because  Abraham 
possessed  nothing  except  seventy  souls,  but  the  King  Messiah 
will  turn  to  the  service  of  God  '  many  peoples,'  i.  e.  the  whole 
world :  more  exalted  than  Moses,  for  Moses  drew  but  a  single 
natifm  to  the  service  of  God,  but  the  King  Messiah  will  bring 
to  his  service  '  many  peoples,'  and  will  restore  peace  between 
many  kings :  and  loftier  tJuin  the  angels,  for  his  sway  will  extend 
even  over  the  heavens,  whose  movements  he  will  miraculously 
change.  Or  we  may  say  that  he  will  be  high  through  [Wt.from] 
Abraham,hecause  his  elevation  will  owe  its  origin  to  the  righteous 
merits  of  Abraham  and  to  what  he  will  inherit  from  him  in  the 
knowledge  of  the  unity  and  sufficiency  of  God :  exalted  through 
Moses,  because  it  will  be  a  consequence  of  his  establishing  and 
cleaving  to  the  law  of  Moses :  and  lofty  through  tlie  angels,  in 

K 


130  E.  sh'lomoii  ASTRUC.  [lii.  14- 

that  it  will  depend  on  the  intelligent  powers  which  belong  to 
him  and  are  his  ministers,  and  which  tend  to  attach  themselves 
to  God,  so  that  he  will  be  like  the  angel  of  the  Lord  of  hosts. 
Of  him,  also,  it  is  said,  that  '  his  angels  he  will  appoint  for  thee 
to  keep  thee  in  all  thy  ways'  (Ps.  xci.  11).  "The  prophet, 
speaking  of  Israel  as  a  whole,  says.  Just  as  all  who  saw  thee 
were  amazed  at  the  greatness  of  thy  distress,  and  said,  What  is 
the  heat  of  this  fierce  anger  (Deut.  xxix.  24)  that  is  iipon  this 
people  more  than  upon  any  other  people  ?  and,  Is  this  the  city 
which  men  used  to  call  the  perfection  of  beauty  (Lara.  ii.  15)? 
[so  will  they  now  be  amazed  at  thy  glory]  :  for  as  before  the 
Lord  gave  full  measure  in  smiting  thee,  so  will  he  now  give 
thee  full  measure  of  prosperity,  so  that  the  dignity  of  this 
Anointed  One,  when  he  is  anointed,  will  surpass  that  of  all 
others  who  are  anointed,  by  the  radiancy  of  his  countenance 
which  will  shine  like  that  of  Moses  (Ex.  xxxiv.  30).  By  '  his 
/orm,'  i.  e.  kut  e^oxrjv,  his  beautiful  form,  he  means  the  form  of 
his  garments,  which  will  be  more  beautiful  than  those  of  any 
who  came  before  him ;  or  perhaps  by  '  form '  he  may  intend 
to  signify  intelligence.  ^'^ As  the  Gentiles  'gnashed  the  teeth, 
saying.  We  have  swallowed  them  up'  (Lam.  ii.  16),  and  as 
amazement  seized  some  of  them  as  they  saw  their  distress  and 
asked  wbether  this  was  the  city  which  was  called  the  perfection 
of  beauty,  so  will  the  Lord  abundantly  cause  many  nations  to 
S])eak  of  the  dignity  of  the  people  and  his  Messiah,  nr  is  from 
a  root  signifying  'to  speak,'  and  is  equivalent  to  the  Spanish 
fard  parlar;  the  meaning  is,  that  God  will  force  them  to  speak 
about  the  Messiah.  Kings,  he  continues,  will  close  their  moutlis 
(}*2p  as  Job  V.  16),  so  as  no  longer  to  tell  of  their  own  dignity, 
but  only  of  the  dignity  of  the  Messiah :  they  themselves  will 
be  as  if  they  had  never  been  born.  Or  )*Dp  may  mean  'to 
strengthen  oneself,'  as  in  Cant.  ii.  8 ;  the  sense  will  then  be, 
'  they  will  exert  themselves  so  as  to  speak  of  the  dignity  of  the 
Messiah,'  After  this,  the  prophet  gives  a  reason  why  the  kings 
and  nations  should  thus  speak,  viz.  because  that  which  had  not 


-liii,  3.]  R.  sh'lomoh  astruc.  131 

been  told  them  tliey  have  seen,  i.e.  they  have  seen  iu  this  Messiah 
what  had  never  been  told  them  of  any  man  born  :  and  that 
which  they  had  neve)'  heard  of  as  belonging  to  any  created  being, 
tJiey  liave  perceived  in  him.  Such  are  the  words  of  the  Gentiles 
and  their  kings. 

LIII.  ^'  -  A  continuation  of  the  words  spoken  by  the  Gentiles 
and  their  kings  :  Who,  at  the  time  when  our  exaltation  and 
prosperity  seemed  secured  to  us,  would  have  believed  this 
o'eport  brought  to  us,  who  are  now  in  utter  depression  and 
disgrace  1  such  a  wondrous  change  could  indeed  have  been 
anticipated  by  no  one.  ApA  upon  tohom  loas  the  ann  of  tJie 
Lord  ever  revealed  to  raise  him  to  such  dignity  as  this  Messiah  ? 
who  came  up  like  a  sucker  in  pride  and  strength,  as  though  it 
had  roots  in  spite  of  the  dry  ground  in  which  it  gi'ew,  and 
notwithstanding  that  till  then  it  had  been  devoid  of  form  and 
comeliness.  For  when  roe  looked  at  him,  and  gazed  upon  his 
countenance,  it  liad  no  beauty,  and  we  did  not  d-esire  him. 
imiDnjI  ought  strictly  to  have  been  imcnj  N?1 :  he  means  to 
say  that  there  was  nothing  in  him  calculated  to  cause  us  to 
desire  him.  Or,  the  meaning  may  be,  '  and  7iow  we  desire  him,' 
viz.  on  account  of  the  many  desirable  qualities  which  he  pos- 
sesses. ^  He  was  despised  and  forloi'n  of  men,  i.  e.  he  was  not 
permitted  to  enter  the  society  of  men,  because  he  was  a  man 
of  pains,  and  broken  by  sickness.  yiT*  as  Jud.  viii.  16;  or 
perhaps  the  word  denotes  that  he  was  so  well  known  generally 
for  the  sicknesses  which  he  endured,  that  in  irapi-ecations  men 
would  say,  May  such  a  one  be  like  him  !  The  next  words  assign 
the  reason  why  Israel  was  thus  rejected  and  cast  aloof  and 
hated  in  their  eyes :  they  say,  '  When  we  saw  the  face-hiding, 
i.  e.  the  manner  in  which  God  hid  his  face  from  him,  and 
cai-ried  him  far  away  captive  among  the  Gentiles,  he  was  then 
despised  and  cast  aloof  by  us,  and  v:e  esteemed  him  not — he  had 
no  value  in  our  ej' es.'  Or,  '  We  did  not  think  of  him  that  God 
would  again  open  his  eyes  and  have  mercy  upon  him,  after 
having  thus  rejected  him  and  removed  him  far  from  his  own 

K  2 


132  R.  sh'lomoh  astruc.  [liii.  4- 

territory ;  and  therefore  this  prosperity  and  greatness,  which  is 
now  liis,  is  "wonderful  in  our  eyes.'"  *  The  nations  and  their 
kings  are  still  the  speakers  :  '  We  will  atone  for  their  blood  ;  the 
pains  and  distresses  which  have  befallen  them  are  owing  to  our 
transgressions'  (in  accordance  with  the  confession,  All  we  like 
slheep  have  gone  aMray) :  the  pi'ojihet's  object  is  to  shew  beyond 
reach  of  doubt,  when  the  various  nations  are  given  up  each 
to  its  appointed  fate,  whether  to  the  sword,  or  to  famine,  or  to 
battle,  and  when  Israel  are  settled  in  their  midst,  and  do  not 
deserve  to  be  delivered  by  a  special  providence,  that  they 
will  be  involved  in  the  calamity  on  their  (the  Gentiles') 
account.  And  so  the  next  verse  says,  °  He  was  toounded  for 
our  iniquities,  etc.,  i.  e.  his  being  wounded  and  bruised  by  the 
piiins  which  we  caused  him  Avas  a  penalty  upon  him,  and  after 
that,  his  iniquities  and  transgressions  became  ours,  according  as 
it  is  written,  '  All  those  that  eat  him  will  be  guilty '  (Jer.  ii.  3). 
Our  Rabbis  say  also,  '  He  desires  to  lay  Avaste  his  house, 
and  to  wash  his  hands  on  that  man  a.'  The  verse  continues, 
Ivy  "lJ''tDl?ti'  "1D10,  i.  e.  either  the  peace  that  was  for  us  was  re- 
moved and  taken  away  from  them  ;  or  \the  removal  of  our  peace 
is  upon,  i.  e,  is  to  be  attributed  to,  7n*m],  '  all  the  time  that  our 
peace  was  taken  away  from  us,  and  this  affliction  came  instead, 
we  kept  complaining  of  him,  and  saying  that  he  was  the  cause 
and  occasion  of  the  harm  which  befel  us,'  By  his  stnpes  we 
are  healed:   they  thought  that  if  they  were  to  inflict  upon  him 


*  Gittin,  fol.  56.  The  context  relates  to  the  destruction  of  the  Temple  : 
'  God  sent  against  them  Nero  Caesar  :  when  he  arrived,  he  shot  an  arrow 
towards  the  East,  it  fell  in  Jerusalem ;  he  shot  one  towards  the  West,  it  fell 
likewise  in  Jerusalem ;  he  shot  towards  the  four  winds  of  heaven,  and  each 
time  it  fell  in  Jerusalem.  He  said  then  to  a  child,  Repeat  me  your  texts. 
The  child  answered :  "  And  I  will  lay  my  vengeance  upon  Edom  [Rome] 
by  the  hand  of  my  people  Israel"  (Ezek,  xxv.  14).  Nero  said,  The  Holy  One 
(blessed  be  He !)  wishes  to  destroy  his  temple,  and  to  icash  his  hands  ujion 
the  man  who  does  it;  so  he  fled  away,  became  a  Jew,  and  from  liim  R.  Meir 
was  descended.     He  then  sent  against  them  Vespasian,'  etc. 


-liii.  7.]  R.  su'lomoii  astruc.  133 

bruises  and  stripes,  it  would  be  healing  for  themselves  :  there 
was  no  healing,  then,  or  rest  of  spirit  for  them,  except  by 
smiting  and  bruising  Israel.  Or,  perhaps,  they  may  mean  to 
say,  '  Contrary  to  what  we  expected,  at  the  time  Avhcn  our  peace 
was  destroyed  and  injury  came  upon  us  on  his  account,  we  now 
see  that  it  is  rather  healing  which  has  come  to  us :  and  this, 
because,  when  he  was  injured  and  smitten  in  consequence  of  his 
union  and  connexion  with  us,  he  prayed  to  God,  and  God 
removed  the  blow,'  as  I  shall  further  explain  on  ver.  7.  It  is 
thus  through  his  union  with  us  in  the  calamity  referred  to  that 
the  healing  is  near  at  hand.  Or  both  meanings,  '  stripe '  as 
well  as  '  union,'  may  perhaps  co-exist  in  niun :  '  when  he  was 
smitten  in  company  with  us,  he  prayed  that  our  misfortune 
might  be  removed,  and  so  we  wei'e  healed.'  'He  was  wounded 
for  our  transgressions '  is  parallel  both  to  '  He  cai'ried  our  sick- 
nesses,' and  to  '  We  accounted  him  smitten,  stricken  of  God, 
and  afflicted  : '  the  prophet  then  adds  V^y  )yiyh\^  "(DID  to  in- 
troduce what  follows,  and  to  explain  how,  in  opposition  to  what 
they  had  anticipated,  viz.  that  Israel  would  injure  them,  their 
own  healing  was,  in  fact,  owing  to  him.  And  so,  to  corroborate 
this,  and  to  shew  that  Israel's  calamity  was  accidental,  and  that 
they  themselves  were  the  transgressors  upon  whom  it  ought  to 
have  fallen,  they  continue,  ^All  we  like  sheep  have  gone  astray, 
thereby  confessing  that  they  were  the  erring  ones  in  religion  and 
conduct,  and  that  what  had  befallen  Isi-ael  was  merely  the  conse- 
quence of  the  punishment  inflicted  on  the  Gentiles,  and  had  thus 
befallen  Isi'ael  accidentally, — either  because  they  were  connected 
with  them,  or  in  order  to  punish  the  Gentiles  as  the  Egyptians  were 
pimished;  for  even  when  it  was  God's  will  to  correct  Israel,  he  him- 
self was  angry  but  a  little,  while  the  Gentiles  helped  on  the  misfor- 
tune, even  going  so  far  as  to  inflict  upon  the  people  '  double  for  all 
their  sin.'  ''He  was  oppressed,  and  he  was  answered,  etc.  Tho 
GentHes  still  continue  speaking;  their  words  assigning  a  reason 
for  the  preceding  '  by  union  with  him  we  are  healed.'  The  mean- 
ing, therefore,  is  that,  when  the  healing  effected  by  Israel  has 


134  R.  sh'lomoh  astruc.  [liii.  8- 

arrived,  tliey  will  speak  and  say  that  when  he  was  oppressed 
and  afflicted  and  prayed  to  God,  he  tvas  answered  and  his  prayer 
for  the  removal  of  the  calamity  heard  and  accepted,  but  that 
nevertheless  '  when  we  condemned  him  he  was  dumb,  and,  like 
a  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter,  opened  not  his  mouths  Or  the  pas- 
sage may  describe  the  evil  they  did  to  Israel,  how  he  was 
oppressed  and  afflicted  and  bruised,  and  could  not  oj^en  his 
mouth :  the  following  words  then  assign  a  reason  for  this 
depression  of  Israel,  and  for  their  being  debarred  from  speak- 
ing. ^An  avowal  of  their  wickedness  in  having  depressed 
Israel,  and  exalted  themselves  :  now,  however,  they  repent  of 
what  they  had  desired,  and  their  words  assign  the  reason  why 
Israel  had  been  dumb  befoi'e  them,  and  why  they  had  despised 
them,  viz.  because  they  saw  that  the  people  were  taken  away 
from  sovereignty  and  judgment.  I^iy  is  from  the  same  root  as 
"iivy  I  Sam.  ix.  17.  The  next  words  describe  what  they  will 
say  when  they  see  the  prosperity  and  success  of  this  Messiah  : 
'Who  xoould  tell  of  him,  as  we  did,  that  he  would  be  cut  off  out  of 
the  land  of  the  living,  i.  e.  out  of  the  future  world,  or  that  the 
stroke  of  exile,  which  fell  upon  them,  was  caused  by  their  trans- 
gressions against  my  people,  and  against  our  Saviour  who  rescued 
the  souls  from  Gehenna?'  Or,  Who  will  say  now  what  we  said 
to  them  whilst  they  were  in  exile,  when  my  people  attributed 
to  them  (as  they  then  believed)  trausgi*ession  in  having  con- 
demned this  man  [i.  e.  Jesus]  1  *  They  declare  here  how  the 
people  of  the  King  Messiah  were  buried  in  the  same  place  vrith 
the  wicked  who  are  condemned  to  death  by  the  sentence  of  a  court, 
and  how  they  were  vdth  the  rich  in  their  death,  being  slain  with- 
out any  ground  of  justice,  like  a  rich  man  murdered,  because 
envied,  for  the  sake  of  his  wealth.  And  the  prophet  uses  '  deaths ' 
in  the  plural,  because  they  condemned  them  to  different  forms  of 
punishment — all,  however,  unjustly,  since,  as  the  prophet  adds, 
he  had  done  no  violence,  neither  ivas  there  any  deceit  in  his 
mouth.  Or  the  last  words  may  close  the  confession  of  their 
own  machinations,  in  condemning  Israel  '  because  lie  had  done 


-liii,  12.]  n.  sh'lomoh  astruc.  135 

no  violence ;'  for  what  they  did  to  him  was  done  with  an  ohserv- 
ance  of  the  usual  forms  of  justice.  ^" After  tliat  they  add,  'The 
sicknesses  which  God  sent  upon  Israel  were  because  he  desired 
to  bruise  lam,  and  correct  hira,  in  order  that,  if  he  laid 
the  (juilt  upon  his  soul,  and  returned  to  the  Lord,  he  might 
have  mercy  upon  hira,  and  give  him  seed  and  length  of  days, 
and  make  him  prosper  in  all  his  pleasure  :'  these  are  still 
the  words  of  the  Gentiles  and  their  kings.  Or  [if  D"'ti'n  be 
the  2nd  pers.],  they  may  be  supposed  to  address  one  another, 
'  1  f  you  think  now  as  you  thought  before,  and  still  intend  to  lay 
a  trespass-offering  upon  the  soul  of  this  people,  believing  that  it 
is  guilty  in  itself,  and  that  it  will  have  no  reward  but  that  its 
soul  will  perish — if  all  this  be  so,  how  then  has  God  exhibited 
towards  him  such  providential  care,  pei'mittiug  him  to  see  seed, 
and  prolong  his  days,  and  prosper  in  the  Lord's  pleasicre,  as  he 
is  doing  now  1  "We  see  surely  that  it  is  for  his  own  good  that 
his  heifer  has  been  hurt^,  and  that  he  has  borne  all  his  mis- 
fortunes for  the  perfecting  and  correction  of  himself  And  this 
is  what  is  meant  by  the  next  verse  :  ^^ Israel,  the  Gentiles 
here  declare,  will  enjoy  prosperity,  and  be  satisfied  with 
the  perfection  of  his  soul :  for  my  servant,  this  Messiah,  will 
justify  him  that  is  truly  jiist,  as  they  say,  '  Until  Elijah  come,' 
and  will  proclaim  to  the  many  his  righteousness.  Their  ini- 
quities also  he  will  hear :  as  he  says,  '  I  will  bear  and  put  in 
safety'  (Is.  xlvi.  4),  in  order  for  men  to  know  that  the  Lord 
corrected  him  and  delivered  him  because  he  loved  him. 
Having  now  finished  his  account  of  what  the  kings  and  nations 
will  say  when  they  see  the  success  of  the  Messiah  and  of  the 
people,  the  prophet  passes  back  in  order  to  complete  what  God  had 
said  above, '  He  shall  be  high,  and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceedingly,' 
by  the  addition  of  ver.  12,  which  says,  ^'^ Because  he  poured  out 
his  sold  to  die,  i.  e.  to  endm'e  afflictions — people  in  distress  are 

^  Comp.  Ex.  xxii.  lo :  a  particular  instance  is  chosen  for  the  purpose 
of  typifying  the  various  forms  of  loss  and  damage  to  which  Israel  was 
exposed. 


136  R.  SH*LOMOH    ASTRUC.  [liij.  12. 

called  'sons  of  death,'  Ps.  Ixxix.  11,  cii.  21 — and  because  he 
carried  the  sin  of  many  (as  he  says,  '  I  have  done  it,  and  I  will 
carry,'  Is.  xlvi.  4),  viz.  the  sin  of  the  Gentiles,  as  was  said  above 
(ver.  5),  and  was  numbered  with  the  transgressors,  tlierefore  I 
will  grant  to  him  that  he  may  divide  spoil  tvith  the  many,  i.  e. 
with  Gog  and  Magog,  who  are  a  people  mighty  in  number  (as 
David  says,  Ps.  iii.  2).  The  meaning  of  '  he  was  numbered  with 
the  transgressors '  is  that  he  was  among  their  number  at  the 
time  of  their  punishment,  and  that  '  in  all  the  distress '  of  the 
Gentiles  '  he  was  distressed '  (Ixiii.  9) ;  or,  perhaps,  that  the 
Gentiles  considered  Israel  to  belong  to  one  class  with  the  trans- 
gressors who  perish.  It  is  said,  lastly,  yjS^  □'•ytyiS-',  i.  e.  either 
that  in  the  eyes  of  the  transgressors  he  was  smitten  terribly; 
or  that  he  was  constantly  begging  and  praying  for  mercy  at  the 
hands  of  the  transgressors,  i.  e.  of  the  Gentiles  who  were  ever 
afflicting  him ;  or,  thirdly,  that  by  his  prayers  he  was  making 
intercession  even  for  them,  although  they  had  transgressed 
against  him,  and  done  him  injury.  Or  the  prophet  may  mean 
that  now  the  Messiah  will  devote  himself  to  shewing  mercy  to 
the  Gentiles,  and  will  be  anxious  to  pardon  them  and  restore 
them  to  prosperity.  yaD""  either  means  he  will  intercede  for  tlte 
transgressors;  or  it  may  have  a  transitive  force,  as  though  to 
say  he  will  compel  them  to  'return  upwards'  (cf,  Hos.  vii.  16, 
xi.  7),  and  pray  to  him,  as  he  says,  '  For  then  will  I  turn  to  the 
people  a  pure  language,  that  they  may  all  call  upon  the  name  of 
the  Lord,  to  serve  him  with  one  consent'  (Zcph.  iii.  9)  :  0  then 
may  our  eyes  behold  and  our  heart  be  glad  !    Amen  and  Amen. 


XXVI.     11.  YIZHAQ   'ELIYYAH   KOHEN. 

A  Commentary  on  the  Parashah, '  Lo,  my  servant  shall  prosper,' 
by  the  wise  and  perfect  master,  Yizhaq  ^Eliyyah. 

To  those  who  wait  there  will  'come  up  saviours'  and  con- 
solations in  Zion  :  these  are  the  honied  words  of  this  prophecy  : 

0  may  the  lips  of  the  priest  *  drop  with  honey  !' 

Says  Isaac  the  priest :  The  glorious  Lord  hath  stirred  up  my 
spirit  to  publish  to  the  world  an  interpretation  of  this  Parashah : 

1  will  take  hold  upon  him,  for  he  will  guide  me  to  expound  it 
rightly;  and  I  shall  receive  a  reward  for  my  explanation, 
because  I  have  been  '  very  jealous '  against  our  objectors  who 
by  their  own  shortsightedness  and  the  shortsightedness  of  those 
who  translate  them  into  their  own  tongues, '  turn  to  wormwood ' 
(Amos  v.  7)  the  right  sense  pertaining  to  the  prophets'  expres- 
sions ;  and  perverting  what  is  straight,  '  make  corrupt  and 
abominable'  their  pleasant  words.  All  day  long  do  they 
dispute  with  us,  sitting  openly  in  public  places  and  defending 
the  belief  that  is  i)lanted  in  their  hearts  respecting  the  funda- 
mental truth,  Whether  or  not  among  the  'vanities'  of  the 
Gentiles  there  are  any  that  can  become  incarnate  ^,  and  gaining 
confirmation  for  their  convictions  whenever  they  see  individuals 
from  amongst  ourselves  associating  in  their  i-anks.  With  a 
high  hand  they  go  forth,  '  swallowing  up  the  way  of  their 
people's  paths,'  and  'making  their  leaders  err'  (Is.  iii.  12)3  nor 


*  A  play  upon  the  prophet's  words,  Jer.  xiv.  22,  depending  on  the  double 
sense  attaching  to  the  root  Dirj ;  in  Biblical  Hebrew  rain,  in  later  Hebrew 
and  in  Aramaic  body :  hence  as  a  verb,  to  become  incarnate. 


138  R.  YIZHAQ   'eLIYYAH    KOHEN.  [lii.  13- 

are  tliey  ashamed  even  to  speak  with  us  in  the  ears  of  the 
people  in  tlie  hmguuge  of  both  Jews  and  Syrians^*.  We  liear 
but  are  silent,  in  all  assemblies  and  concourses  flattering  them; 
yet  they  reproach  and  revile  us  before  the  eyes  of  all,  but  we 
are  not  abashed  or  put  to  confusion,  either  '  at  themselves  or  at 
the  noise  of  them'  (Ezek.  vii.  11),  for  we  know  that,  since  they 
are  not  in  the  least  degree  assured  firmly  of  the  tiiith  of  their 
belief,  it  is  impossible  that  they  can  have  set  their  mind  to 
make  their  heart  and  their  mouth  agree.  And  inasmuch  as  I 
have  never  in  my  life  either  seen  or  heard  of  the  exposition  of 
a  clear  or  fluent  commentator,  in  which  ray  own  judgment  and 
that  of  others  who  have  pondered  on  the  same  subject  might 
completely  acquiesce,  I  have  resolved,  with  '  the  help  of  my  God 
upon  me,'  to  discover  and  publish  the  true  sense  for  the  benefit 
of  every  one  who  possesses  the  intelligence  to  understand  ;  and 
to  shew  that  it  is  as  widely  removed  as  possible  from  the 
strange  conception  alluded  to,  which  only  seemingly  approxi- 
mates to  it,  in  order  that  the  reproach  and  nakedness  of  its 
advocates  may  be  made  the  more  evident. 

LII.  ^^  The  prophet,  speaking  in  God's  name,  calls  Israel  my 
servant,  as  above,  xli.  8,  xliv.  i,  and  as  we  often  find  him  called 
elsewhere,  both  by  Isaiah  himself  and  by  other  prophets  as  well. 
Here  he  declares  that,  although  at  the  time  spoken  of,  Israel  is 
in  great  depression,  and  his  exertions  unsuccessful,  yet  the  days 
will  come  when  he  will  prosper  (?''3ti'''  as  i  Sam.  xviii.  14)  in  all 
that  he  sets  his  hand  to.  Ue  villi  be  hiyh,  and  exalted,  and 
lofty  exceedingly.  Inasmuch  as  the  three  words  employed  all 
represent  variations  of  the  same  general  idea  of  laudation,  our 
doctors  expound  each  minutely,  saying,  '  He  will  be  high  above 
Abraham,  exalted  above  Moses,  ■  lofty  above  the  ministering 
angels.'  By  this,  however,  they  give  occasion  to  error  on  the 
part  of  the  heretics,  who  exclaim  that  such  expi-essions  are  suffi- 
cient, pointing,  as  they  evidently  do,  to  the  Godhead,  which  the 

^  Is.  xxxvi.  X I  :  he  means  to  say  in  both  Hebrew  and  Spanish. 


-Hi.  15.]  R.  YiziiAQ  'euyyah  kohen.  139 

Christians  conceive  to  have  been  united  to  the  body  of  the 
Messiah,  who  was  'higher  than  the  angels.'  But  God  forbid 
this  to  have  been  tlie  intention  of  our  Rabbis :  the  Mem's 
denote  [not  comparison  or  superiority,  but]  derivation,  and 
must  accordingly  be  rendered  by  '■from^  Elevation  and  dignity, 
it  is  meant,  will  come  to  Isi-ael  '  from  Abraham '  and  Abraham's 
merits,  who  was  the  high  father  of  a  '  multitude  of  nations,'  and 
our  father  in  particular,  and  the  impi-int  of  whose  nature  should 
be  discernible  in  us  all.  He  will  be  exalted  '  from  Moses,' 
because  from  Moses,  who  exalted  himself  over  Pharaoh  and 
Egypt,  over  Sihon  and  Og,  and  over  the  kings  of  Midian,  he 
will  receive  the  power  of  triumphing  over  his  enemies.  And 
he  will  be  lofty  '  from  the  angels/  because  these  will  raise  him 
up  and  help  him,  as  they  helped  him  in  the  days  of  old, 
and  both  when  he  came  forth  out  of  Egypt,  and  at  other 
times,  wrought  for  him,  at  God's  good  pleasure,  marvellous 
signs  and  wondei's,  as  we  believe,  through  God,  they  will 
work  for  us  likewise.  ^*They  were  asloniahed  at  thee,  O  my 
servant,  and  their  wonder  at  thy  depression  was  so  great  that 
they  exclaimed.  His  countenance  is  marred  beyond  man,  and  his 
form  heyond  the  sons  of  men :  in  these  words  they  give  vent  to 
their  surprise  at  Israel's  marred  and  disfigured  form.  By  the 
word/onre,  the  notion  is  conveyed  of  the  qualities  or  attributes 
of  the  soul,  by  which  human  society  is  preserved  :  the  meaning 
being,  that  in  Israel  these  attributes  are  marred  and  distorted 
more  than  in  any  other  men.  ^^The  prophet  means  to  say  that  his 
appearance  and  form,  and  the  wonderful  expression  which  he  will 
wear  at  the  time  of  the  deliverance,  when  the  destined  period  of 
unequalled  prosperity  has  arrived  for  him,  will  cause  the  nations 
to  proclaim  his  dignity  and  praise.  CQl  means  nobles,  as  Jar. 
xxxix.  1 3  :  and  the  '  nations '  are  those  collected  from  among  all 
peoples,  theii'  residuum,  so  to  speak,  who  cannot  trace  their 
descent  from  any  single  ancestor.  To  these,  and  especially 
to  their  kings,  Isaiah's  predictions,  as  I  shall  presently  shew, 
may  be  referred :    for  these  nations  in  particular  have  always 


140  R.  YiZHAQ 'i:liyyaii  kohen.  [lii.  15- 

hated  us,  and  made  us  wanderers  upon  the  earth ;  and 
their  chief,  the  Caesar  of  the  Roman  empire,  hiid  waste  our 
Sanctuary,  and  led  us  captives  from  our  land,  their  hatred  of  us 
increasing  still  more,  after  they  had  accepted  for  themselves  and 
for  their  seed,  the  belief  alluded  to  [i.  e.  Christianity],  nr  has 
a  causative  force,  being  formed  fi-om  nO,  and  applied  meta- 
phorically in  the  sense  of  sprinhling  or  dropping  words;  it  is 
thus  equivalent  to  fard  parlor  in  Spanish.  At  Jmn  kings  ivill 
shut  their  mouth,  i.  e.  the  kings  of  this  people :  the  gesture 
being  that  of  one  who  feels  astonishment  or  surprise  at  what  is 
wholly  above  his  compivhension,  and  who  at  first  closes  his  lips 
forcibly  and  contorts  his  whole  countenance  and  expression  in 
amazement,  but  afterwards  speaks  out.  In  the  same  way  these 
kings  will  close  their  mouths  in  astonishment  at  the  marvellous 
and  splendid  prosperity  which  will  then  be  visible  amongst  us. 
For,  he  continues,  their  eyes  will  suddenly  behold  such  a  degree 
of  exaltation  as  had  never  been  told  them,  because,  had  they 
heard  of  it  previously,  they  would  have  had  a  foretaste  of  what 
it  would  be  like,  and  would  not  have  felt  such  wonder  when 
they  actually  saw  it.  The  hearing  spoken  of  in  the  next  words 
does  not  mean  the  hearing  of  the  ear,  but  (as  Ex.  xxiv.  7  and 
often)  the  reception  and  understanding  of  the  heart :  what  had 
never  entered  into  their  hearts  to  imagine  or  conceive,  they  will 
then  understand. 

LIII.  '  Here  the  kings  commence  speaking  :  Who,  they  ask, 
can  credit  this  report  which  we  now  hear  and  understand  ?  and, 
Who  ever  believed  that  the  arm  or  might  of  the  Lord  would  be 
revealed  upon  him  to  whom  it  has  now  disclosed  itself  just  at 
the  time  when  he  was  laid  low  in  complete  exhaustion  and 
insignificance  1  The  revelation  is  the  one  alluded  to  above 
(lii.  10),  where  it  is  said,  '  The  Lord  hath  laid  bare  his  holy  arm 
before  the  eyes  of  all  the  Gentiles,'  etc.  '^And  who  of  the 
children  of  men  would  believe  that  one  who  before  it,  i.  e.  before 
this,  was  like  a  sucker,  would  spring  up,  and  rise  to  such 
dignity  1    for  a  young  shoot  may  be  planted  in  such  a  way  as 


-liii.  4-]  n.  Yi/jiAQ, 'eliyyah  koiien.  141 

never  to  thrive  and  acquire  the  power  of  producing  leaves  or 
bearing  fruit '^.  And  as  a  root  out  of  the  dry  ground:  for  at 
that  time  he  was  like  a  root  in  a  dry  and  arid  soil,  which  will 
never  put  forth  any  shoot.  He  had  no  form  and  no  beauty,  so 
that  it  might  be  thought  possible  for  him  ever  to  attain  pros- 
perity ;  and  tve  despised  him,  but  he  bore  the  contempt  in 
silence,  and  answered  not  a  word,  neither  shelved  us  what  there 
was  in  him  worthy  to  be  desired,  for  fear  lest,  if  he  were  to  do 
so,  our  own  shame  might  be  revealed,  because  we  should  then 
no  longer  deppise  him,  but  begin  to  long  for  and  desire  him. 
riNT  means  to  look  doivn  upon,  as  Cant.  i.  6 ;  and  iiN^D  is  a 
partic,  as  Ex.  xxv.  9.  ^The  prophet  now  states  the  nature  of 
this  contempt, — how  he  was  despised  in  his  own  eyes,  and 
separate  from  all  men  by  reason  of  his  insignificance  ;  how, 
further,  he  was  like  a  man  tried  by  such  a  continued  succession 
of  pains  that  they  became  natural  to  him,  and  he  felt  them  no 
longer;  how  also  he  was  broken  (Jud.  viii.  16)  by  severe  sick- 
ness, and  was  as  one  ivho,  in  order  to  leai'n  his  shortcomings 
and  his  shame,  seeks  to  hide  his  face  from  us.  So  was  he  es- 
teemed in  our  eyes ;  he  ivas  therefore  despised,  and  we  esteemed 
Mm  not :  *hut  now  we  perceive  that  this  his  disfigurement 
resulted  because  he  carried  our  sicknesses  and  bore  otir  pains, 
viz.  the  sicknesses  of  our  soul  (notice  that  pain  is  parallel  to 
sickness).  By  these  are  signified  false  beliefs,  wliich  press  more 
heavily  on  a  man  than  anything  else.  For  there  is  no  pain 
greater  than  the  pain  of  the  soul ;  and,  therefore,  when  one  of 
our  wise  men  was  asked.  Why  is  a  heavy  man  heavier  than  a 
heavy  burden  1  he  replied,  Because  the  former  is  heavy  both  in 
body  and  soul,  but  the  latter  in  body  only.  We,  however,  the 
prophet  continues,  thought  him  smitten  and  afflicted  by  God  for 
his  own  transgressions :  but  in  fact  he  was  smitten  solely  by 
the   unwarrantable    opinions   and    reasonings  wliich   he   heard 

"=  He  intends  the  verse  to  be  rendered,  For  [what  was]   before  like  a 
[stunted]  sucier,  sprang  up. 


142  -R.  YiZHAQ  'eliyyah  kohen.  [liii- 5" 

from  our  lips,  and  was  compelled  by  terror  to  endure.  Or, 
more  probably,  the  meaning  may  be,  that  we  thought  him 
stricken  for  the  transgi-ession  and  blow  inflicted  by  him  (as 
we  conceived)  upon  God,  crucified,  smitten,  and  afflicted  at 
his  hands.  ^Not  only,  however,  was  he  wounded  for  our 
transgressions,  i.  e.  wounded  by  bearing  them,  and  bruised  by 
the  weight  of  our  iniquities  (as  is  stated) :  we  Avent  on  to 
pain  him  still  more  grievously  than  before;  for  ever  and 
anon,  when  peace  was  removed  from  us,  we  laid  the  blame 
of  its  removal  xipon  him,  saying  that  our  distress  all  came 
ujjon  us  in  consequence  of  his  iniquity  and  because  he  dwelt 
in  the  midst  of  our  land.  But  it  was  not  as  we  imagined  :  our 
peace  did  not  depart  from  us  on  his  accouut ;  on  the  contrary, 
because  of  his  union  with  us,  and  because  we  threw  the  blame  of 
our  calamities  upon  him,  and  he  was  smitten  by  us  both  in 
word  and  deed,  he  prayed  to  his  God,  and  God  for  his  merits 
sent  forth  healing.  And  this  is  what  the  nations  say  here,  And 
by  union  vnth  him  we  wert  Jiealed.  iTTinn  is  a  mixed  form, 
derived  from  nnnn  (Job  xxxiv.  8)  and  mi3n,  like  DrT'innC'O 
(Ezek.  viii.  i6),  which  is  formed  similarly  from  n^nti^n  and 
ninnKTl.  ^Like  sheep  without  a  shepherd  we  have  all  gone 
astray  in  a  '  work  of  errors'  (Jer.  x.  15,  li.  18)  :  yet  it  is  not  after 
the  proud  (Ps.  xl.  5)  that  we  have  gone,  but  we  have  all  turned 
after  the  way  of  the  '  man,'  whose  end  was  that  God  caused  the 
iniquity  of  us  all  to  meet  upon  him  by  the  judgment  of  an 
earthly  court.  The  prophet  alludes  here  to  the  death  [of 
Jesus],  whose  religion  was  such  as  to  be  a  source  of  great 
'iniquity'  to  us  all.  The  expression  must  thus  be  referred  to 
the  Godlwad,  its  incarnation,  sufferings,  and  death  :  for  it  is 
impossible  that  every  man^  should  turn  after  his  own  way,  and 
do  what  is  right  in  his  own  eyes,  in  a  place  where  there  are  kings 
ruling  and  punishing  the  evil  doer :  and  this  is  a  proof  that 

^  Instead  of  the  usual  translation,  We  turned  every  man  after  his  own  way, 
R.  'Eliyyah,  for  the  reason  here  assigned,  prefers  to  construe  differently, '  The 
anan  [i.e.  Jesus]  we  have  turned  after  his  way.' 


-liii.  8.]  R.  YiziiAQ  'eliyyaii  koiien.  143 

it  is  the  kings  themselves  who  are  here  speaking.  We  must 
thei'efore  suppose  that  tlie  pronoun  in  *  Ids  way'  points  to  the 
well-known  '  man'  [Jesus],  a  supposition  which  is  confirmed  by 
the  fact  that  the  number  of  the  letters  in  B>"'Nn  ['the  man']  is 
the  same  as  the  number  formed  by  the  letters  of  his  name  (itJ'''), 
the  letters  themselves  being  also  identical  in  the  two  cases,  n 
with  N  being  treated  as  equivalent  to  "I ;  and  just  as  our  wise 
men  take  off  one  letter  from  his  name,  saying,  '  There  is  no  salva- 
tion for  him^,'  so  the  prophet  omits  n  [in  t^''Nn]  in  order  that  no 
one  should  think  it  possible  for  man  to  be  ever  associated  with 
God.  The  intelligent  will  understand f!  ''Nor  was  it  enough 
that  he  was  oppressed  and  afflicted  by  bearing  our  sicknesses, 
and  that  he  opened  not  his  mouth :  we  despised  him,  and  pained 
him  still  more  by  smiting  and  slaying  him  with  the  sword,  and 
plundering  him  of  all  his  riches.  Accordingly  it  is  said,  He 
imts  led  like  a  sheep  to  the  slaughter,  and  like  a  lamb,  etc. ;  as 
though  to  say,  At  one  time  he  suffered  by  being  butchered 
like  a  sheep,  at  another  by  his  wealth  and  possessions  being 
taken  from  him  [like  wool  from  a  lamb].  Notwithstanding 
this,  he  never  opened  his  mouth  to  complain  of  his  \\Tongs  before 
any  of  the  judges  or  the  king,  because  even  the  authorities  took 
pleasure  in  the  wiles  of  the  transgressors  against  liim,  thinking 
that  the  hope  of  his  soul  had  perished.  ^  He  tvas  taken  aioay 
from  the  coercion  of  the  coercer  (i.  e.  the  king),  and  from  the 
judgment  of  the  judge  :  for,  since  the  Christians  are  accustomed 
in  general  to  be  subject  to  two  kings,  the  king  and  the  priest — • 
the  former  having  power  over  the  body,  and  being  called  the 
'coercer,'  as  i  Sam.  ix.  17;  and  the  latter  having  to  deal  with 
the  soul,  and  being  termed  the  'judge' — the  prophet  here  speaks 
with  reference  to  each  of  these  offices  at  once,  saying  that  he 
was  removed  from  both.      The  kings  are  the  same  as  those 

®  Ps.  iii.  3  :  the  spelling  vc,  in  lieu  of  v^  '«r',  seemed  to  our  author  to  have 
been  selected  intentionally  for  the  purpose  of  severing  all  appeaiance  of  con- 
nexion between  the  name  of  Jesus  and  '  salvation'  (ni-Vi"). 

'  I.e.  (poivavra  avverotai. 


144  R.  YizTiAQ 'eliyyaii  kohen.  [liii.  9- 

alluded  to  in  Is.  Hi.  15.  Of  the  men  of  his  generation,  he  next 
asks,  among  all  nations  of  the  earth,  who  or  where  was  the 
man  that  could  intelligently  condnde  that  lie  had  been  cut  off  out 
of  the  land  of  tJu  living  1  The  transgression  of  my  people  con- 
sisted in  their  entertaining  an  opinion  the  reverse  of  the  truth  : 
it  thus  caused  a  stroke  to  fall  ujiou  them,  because  he  '  is  the 
righteous,  and  I  and  my  people  are  the  wicked' (Ex.  ix.  27). 
And  '  the  land  of  the  living'  is  the  world  of  spirits,  as  David 
writes,  '  I  shall  walk  before  the  Lord  in  the  lauds  of  the  living' 
(Ps.  cxvi.  9),  and  I  have  done  good  in  my  works  in  order  that 
I  may  walk  there,  because  '  I  make  men  believe  when  I  speak,' 
i.e.  I  justify  many  and  inspire  them  with  right  beliefs  by  my 
words — ^nJONn  being  here  causative — 'I  have  sung  aloud'  (njy 
as  Ex.  XV.  2  I  or  Is.  xxvii.  2  of  praise),  as  though  to  say,  I  have 
composed  songs  and  antiphons  many  in  order  that  men  may  use 
them  for  prayer  and  praise  :  '  I  said  in  my  alarm' — if  I  was  seized 
with  alarm  because  of  my  distress,  I  put  my  trust  solely  in  the  Lord, 
that  he  might  deliver  me,  and  said, '  All  men  are  liars,'  and,  '  Vain 
is  the  help  of  man.'  "  The  subject  of  ]T)'')  is  '  my  people'  (ver.  8) : 
not  only  did  we  beset  him  all  his  life  long  with  persecution,  vexa- 
tion, and  contempt :  he  gave  up  his  own  body  to  be  buried  in  the 
tomb  of  tJie  wiched,  judging  himself  to  be  a  wicked  man,  '  poor 
and  lightly  esteemed'  (i  Sam.  xviii.  23),  who  for  his  deceitful- 
ness  and  violence  ought  not  to  receive  any  honour.  But  when 
one  of  his  own  people  died,  he  treated  him  as  a  rich  and  honour- 
able man,  shewing  him  respect  and  burying  him  in  a  dis- 
tinguished spot,  prepared  beforehand  near  himself.  And  all 
this  contempt  was  heaped  upon  him  because  he  had  done  no 
violence,  and  because  there  was  no  deceit  in  his  mouth  in  all 
his  behaviour  toward  the  person  who  is  here  hinted  at  [Jesus], 
Up  to  this  point  are  the  words  of  the  kings,  confessing  their 
transgression,  and  speaking  on  behalf  of  themselves  and  their 
people  :  in  the  next  verse  the  prophet  makes  a  change,  and 
begins  to  speak  in  the  name  of  God.  ^°  But  the  Lord  was 
pleased  to  bruise  him  and  to  sicken  him  with  the  rod  of  exile, 


-liii.  12.]  R.  YIZHAQ  'eliyyah  kohen.  145 

in  order  to  try  him  :  hut  if  his  soul  makes  a  trespass-offering 
for  itself,  and  acknowledges  that  for  its  iniquities  and  guilt  it 
deserves  such  suffering,  and  so  justifies  the  Lord  for  sending 
it,  then  for  its  merits  in  doing  this  he  shall  see  seed  in  the  latter 
days,  and  the  time  will  draw  near  of  which  the  prophets  spoke, 
saying,  '  As  the  days  of  a  tree  are  the  days  of  my  people,  and 
the  work  of  their  hands  shall  my  chosen  ones  use  up'  (Is.  Ixv.  22); 
and  again  (ver.  20),  '  The  youth  shall  die  a  hundred  years  old.' 
Then  also  tJie  Lord's  pleasure,  i.  e.  adherence  and  devotion  to 
his  law,  shall  prosjJer  in  Jiis  hand  in  such  a  manner  that  thei'e 
will  not  come  forth  against  him  any  adversary  or  oppressor 
such  as  he  had  over  him  while  he  was  in  the  pit  of  exile. 
''■^  From  the  labour  of  his  soul,  viz.  the  spiritual  labour  which  he 
bestows  upon  the  law,  he  will  see  and  be  satisfied,  i.  e.  attain 
to  it  and  be  satisfied  from  it :  by  his  knowledge  and  intention  he 
will  make  it  his  aim  to  justify  the  just — my  servant  will  be  able 
to  justify  tnanij,  though  all  will  not  like  him  reach  such  dignity 
and  wisdom  as  to  merit  the  prerogative  and  office  of  judge, 
and  those  who  thus  fall  short  of  it  will,  as  it  is  said  in  Daniel 
(xii.  3),  'shine  as  the  brightness  of  the  firmament'  [and  not, 
like  those  who  '  turn  many  to  righteousness,'  as  '  the  stars  for 
ever  and  ever'].  And  those  ivhose  iniquities  he  hare,  i.e.  even 
those  whose  iniquities  he  was  bearing  throughout  the  whole  of 
the  exile,  he  will  teach  righteousness,  and  bring  them  back  to  the 
truth,  pno^  is  future  instead  of  past,  like  rm'JJ''  (Job  i.  5).  Or, 
possibly,  the  phrase  '  making  mauy  just'  may  allude  to  the  King 
Messiah,  of  whom  it  is  said  (Jer.  xxiii.  5,  cf.  xxxiii.  15),  'I  will 
cause  a  righteous  Branch  to  flourish  for  David,  and  a  king  shall 
reign  and  pi'osper,  and  shall  execute  judgment  smdi  justice  in  the 
earth.'  ^"^Therefore  I  will  divide  him  a  portion  and  inheritance 
with  nobles  and  princes,  and  ivith  the  migldy  lie  shall  divide 
the  spoil  of  the  enemy,  in  return  for  his  having  prepared  and 
appointed  his  soul  to  die  for  the  glory  of  God,  and  because  he 
teas  numbered  ivith  the  transgressors  and  the  wicked  (for  now  he 
will  be  numbered  with  just  and  honourable  princes,  with  the 

li 


146  R.  YIZHAQ  'eLIYYAH    KOIIEN.  [liii.  12. 

great  and  '  noble  who  are  in  the  earth'),  and  carried  ilie  sin  of 
many.  For  all  this  will  be  so  no  more :  he  will  no  longer 
be  afraid  of  them  as  he  was  once,  but  will  fall  ui^ori,  them  and 
destroy  them  out  of  the  world,  rendering  their  desert  upon  their 
heads,  if  they  do  not  return  to  what  is  good,  but  cleave  still 
to  their  wickedness.  Thus  will  Israel  '  rejoice  in  their  king'  (Ps. 
cxlix.  2);  and  'joy  and  gladness  shall  draw  near'  (Is.  xxxv.  10). 
Then  thon  shalt  tell  how  that  belief  is  finally  destroyed  and 
swallowed  up,  which  teaches  that  the  Living,  the  Self-subsistent, 
and  the  Eternal,  consented  to  undergo  change  and  death  so  as 
for  men  to  make  his  death  a  cause  of  weeping  year  by  year 
throughout  their  generations  s.  Then,  too,  we  shall  not  ourselves 
weep  any  more  over  the  desolation  of  our  glorious  sanctuary, 
which  was  built  to  last  for  ever,  nor  be  a  reproach  and  pi'overb 
to  the  Gentiles  :  as  it  is  written  (Is.  xxv.  8), '  He  hath  swallowed 
up  death  for  ever,  and  the  Lord  God  will  wipe  away  tears  from 
off  all  faces  ! ' 

s  Alluding,  of  course,  to  the  observances  connected  with  Holy  Week. 


XXVIIIa.     R.  LIPMANN  OF  MUHLHAUSEN. 

LII.  "At  this  point  the  Christians  '  open  their  mouths  without 
measure'  (Is.  v.  14),  and  explain  the  Parashah  of  the  Nazarene : 
their  position  can,  however,  be  refuted  both  from  the  contents  of 
the  Parasliah  itself  and  also  fi'om  what  precedes  and  follows  it. 
The  preceding  context  speaks  of  the  redemption  of  Israel,  of 
gathering  them  from  exile,  and  bringing  them  to  their  own 
land,  Is.  Hi.  i,  where  the  words  '  uncircumcised  and  unclean' 
point,  as  I  have  explained  above  (§  228),  to  the  days  of  the 
Messiah;  for  how  can  it  be  said  that  the  ' uncircumcised  and 
unclean'  do  not  come  there  now?  is  not  Jerusalem  at  present 
filled  with  all  the  heretics  in  the  world  1  Then  he  continues, 
*Ye  were  sold  for  nought,'  etc.  (Is.  Hi.  4  f.),  alluding  to  the 
Israelites  who  went  down  into  Egypt,  and  to  those  who  were  led 
captive  to  Chalach  and  Chabor  by  the  king  of  Assyi-ia,  as  is 
narrated  in  the  book  of  Kings  (II.  xvii.  6,  xviii.  11).  These  and 
the  following  verses  down  to  Hi.  1 2  make  it  plain  to  every  one  to 
whom  God  has  given  eyes  to  see  and  a  heart  to  understand,  that 
the  Parashah  beginning  with  the  next  verse  must  refer  likewise 
to  Israel's  redemption  from  captivity.  And  this  conclusion 
is  confirmed  by  the  words  immediately  succeeding  it,  '  Shout, 
0  barren  one,'  etc.  (Is.  liv.  i),  all  of  which  refer  to  the  same 
occasion  when  the  re-gathered  exiles  will  be  '  many  : '  for  how 
can  the  passage  be  explained  of  the  mother  of  the  Nazarene  ]  is  it 
not  written,  '  The  woman  that  hath  not  borne,'  whereas  all  admit 

"  For  XXVII  see  the  preface. 
L  2 


148  E.  LIPMANN   OF    MUHLHAUSEN. 

that  the  mother  of  the  Nazarene  did  bear  1  In  the  same  way, 
the  '  desolated  cities'  (ver.  3), '  thy  redeemer'  (ver.  5),  etc.,  down 
to  'the  waters  of  Noah'  (ver.  9),  all  point  in  the  same  direction, 
and  allude  to  the  days  of  the  Messiah,  as,  by  the  help  of  God, 
I  shall  explain  below,  §  237,  on  Is.  liv.  17.  Again,  at  the 
beginning  of  the  Parashah,  the  expression  my  servant  occm-s, 
and  still  they  assert  that  there  is  only  a  Trinity  in  the  Godhead, 
viz.  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Spirit ;  but  if  at  one  time  they 
make  the  second  Person  into  a  servant,  and  at  another  into 
a  son,  then  the  Godhead  is  not  threefold  but  fourfold ;  and  is  it 
not  also  a  dishonour  for  them  that  he  is  called  'servant?'  for 
the  servant  is  not  of  the  same  s})ecies  with  the  man,  as  the  son 
is  with  the  father.  Then,  after  having  interpreted  the  term 
'  servant '  of  the  Nazarene,  they  are,  in  consequence,  reluctantly 
compelled  to  explain  it  further  of  his  carnal  body  ;  and  this 
involves  the  error  of  supposing  that  the  body  '  has  intelligence' 
(?''3C^''),  for  it  is  not  the  flesh,  even  in  a  living  nian  (as  is  well 
known  to  all  educated  persons),  but  rather  the  intelligence 
within  it,  that  is  the  seat  of  understanding.  They  next  have 
to  admit  that  this  intelligence  of  his  is  what  they  call  the 
Father ;  for  if  they  allowed  it  to  be  something  different,  and 
separate  from  the  intelligence  of  the  Father,  then  the  Unity  of 
the  Godhead  would  be  lost,  and  all  their  belief  about  the  Trinity 
being  one,  and  not  two  or  three,  would  be  overthrown.  It 
is,  moreover,  surprising  that  he  is  termed  '  despised  and  forlorn 
of  men,'  and  '  stricken,'  i.  e.  with  the  plague  of  leprosy  :  for  how 
can  they  apply  such  expressions  to  their  God  1  And  by  ex- 
plaining the  second  verse  of  the  Parashah  with  minute  exacti- 
tude, in  which  the  prophet  says  at  thee  rather  than  at  him,  we 
may  see  that,  as  I  shall  immediately  shew,  he  was  addressing 
those  to  whom  the  prophecy  relates,  i.  e.  Israel.  Then  he 
says  '  smitten  of  God,'  because  the  subject  spoken  of  had  been 
smitten  by  him :  whereas  to  support  the  erroneous  view  of  those 
who  apply  the  phrase  to  their  God,  the  order  of  the  two  words 
must  have  been  reversed  :   it  must  have  been   '  smitten  God' 


E.  LIPMANN    OF    JlUHLHAUSElf.  149 

rather  tlian  '  God-smitten.'  Next  it  is  said,  '  He  was  cut  off 
out  of  the  hmd  of  life  :'  this  means  the  land  of  Israel,  which  is 
so  called  from  its  being  a  goodly  land  and  filled  with  every  pro- 
vision for  life  (rrriO),  'flowing,'  to  use  the  words  of  iScripture, 
'with  milk  and  honey:'  in  Ps.  cxvi.  9  and  Ezek.  xxxii.  23  the 
expression  occurs  in  the  same  sense  (I  have  given  it,  however, 
another  signification  in  the  Parashah  TT'I  [Gen.  xlvii.  28  to  1.  26] 
above,  §  42).  Now  how  can  this  be  explained  of  the  Nazarene  1 
did  not  he  die  in  the  land  of  Israel  ?  if  the  verse  refers  to 
him  it  ought  to  have  run,  '  He  was  cut  off  from  life  : '  for  what 
was  the  land  from  which  he  was  cut  off"?  It  is  strange  also 
that,  though  they  have  eyes,  they  still  do  not  see  the  force  of  what 
is  written  in  ver.  10:  for  how  could  his  happiness  depend  upon 
a  condition  (if  his  soul...)?  and  how  does  the  receiving  a 
reward  accord  with  his  nature  ?  Who  is  the  madman  that  can 
say  such  things  of  God  ?  are  they  not  inapplicable  to  any  except 
men  ?  And  when  it  is  said,  '  He  shall  see  seed  and  lengthen 
days,'  did  either  he  or  his  seed  have  long  life  ]  And  if  they 
answer  that  the  Nazarene  had  seed,  then  he  must  have  begotten 
for  them  a  plurality  of  deities  :  for  '  seed '  cannot  be  interpreted 
to  mean  disciples,  and  you  will  not  find  in  the  whole  twenty- 
four  books  of  the  Bible  that  disciples  are  called  anything  but 
'  sons '  (as,  '  Ye  shall  teach  your  sons,'  Deut.  xi.  1 9  3  '  the  sons 
of  the  prophets,'  2  Kings  ii.  3  al. ;  'my  son,'  Prov.  i.  8  etc.)  : 
but  the  seed  of  the  Messiah  can,  beyond  question,  signify  only 
his  physical  off'spriug.  And  therefore  we  cannot,  as  some  have 
done,  conclude  that  the  '  servant '  indicates  a  single  person  :  it  -^ 
must  denote  a  whole,  comprehending  a  multitude  of  individuals. 
Observe,  too,  that  he  does  not  say  death,  but  deaths:  yet  a 
single  man  cannot  die  more  than  once ;  and  that  the  end  of  the 
Parashah  (liv.  17)  indicates  likewise  a  plurality,  speaking  of  the 
servants  of  the  Lord  in  the  plural.  In  the  same  way  Isaiah 
frequently  speaks  of  Isi'ael  collectively  in  the  singular  under  the 
designation  of  '  servant,'  as  in  the  Haftarah  to  [the  Parashah] 
K  K  [Gen.  xii.  i-xvii.  27],  Is.  xli.  8;  so  also,  when  addressing 


150  B.  LIPMANN   OF   MUHLHAUSEN. 

him  by  the  title  expressive  of  his  lowliness,  as  a  worm  (xli.  14). 
The  exile  he  speaks  of  elsewhere  under  the  imagery  of  'stripes' 
and  'blows:'  cf.  above,  xxx.  26,  and  at  the  beginning  of  the 
book,  i.  6 :  the  expression  must  therefore  be  understood  here  in 
the  same  sense. 

It  is  an  established  usage  for  Israel  to  be  called  '  my  servant,' 
in  the  singular,  as  I  have  explained,  though  the  term  does 
not  include  all  Israel,  but  only  the  righteous  amongst  them : 
because  the  wicked,  not  doing  what  is  right,  are  not  in  general 
God's  servants.  The  prophet  addresses  Israel  and  says  that 
as  the  nations,  of  whom  there  are  many,  saw  what  a  multitude 
\  of  great  and  just  ones  were  brought  low  in  exile,  so  at  the  hour 
of  redemption  they  will  be  amazed  at  them  and  will  say.  We 
thought  them  to  be  guilty  of  transgressions  themselves,  but,  on 
the  contrary,  they  bore  ours  :  because  when  the  Holy  One  sent 
pestilence  and  famine  and  his  other  judgments  into  the  world 
for  the  sins  of  the  Gentiles,  the  righteous  who  had  not  offended 
were  struck  in  consequence  (as  I  have  explained  under  the 
Parashah  13''tNn  [Dent,  xxxii.  1-52],  §  106).  They  will  say 
further,  Tlie  chastisement  of  our  j)^ace  was  upon  Jiim,  because, 
except  for  the  merits  of  the  righteous,  the  world  had  not  been 
preserved,  but  would  have  been  laid  waste  by  the  Holy  One 
for  the  nations'  sins :  their  tranquillity,  then,  has  its  basis  and 
support  in  the  merit  of  the  righteous.  By  his  stripes  we  are 
healed,  for,  since,  as  I  have  explained,  punishment  came  upon 
the  righteous  without  cause,  and  simply  on  account  of  the 
Gentiles  who  sinned,  therefore  the  Almighty  cuts  short  the 
punishment  of  the  Gentiles  before  the  time  :  thus  they  are 
healed  by  the  stripes  of  the  righteous.  All  we  like  sheep  have 
gone  astray:  because  it  will  become  clear  to  them  that  their 
own  belief  has  been  an  error,  and  they  will  come  round  to  ours, 
as  it  is  said,  '  In  that  day  the  Lord  God  will  be  one,  and  his 
name  one '  (Zech.  xiv.  9),  which,  with  the  help  of  God,  I  shall 
explain  in  §  259,  on  Zephaniah.  lie — viz.  the  servant,  i.  e. 
the  righteous — was  oppressed,  and  was  like  a  sheej)  led  to  the 


R.  LIPMANN    OF    MUHLHAUSEN.  151 

slaughter.  Up  to  this  point  the  prophet  describes  how  the 
Gentiles  will  speak  in  the  future  :  he  now  begins  to  speak  in 
his  own  person.  TT7io  will  declare  his  goieration  ?  i.  e.  who  can 
tell  all  the  sufferings  of  the  generation  of  this  servant,  and  his 
persecution  during  the  captivity  ?  And  for  the  transgression, 
etc.  The  conjunction  l"  adds  a  fresh  reason  for  what  had  oc- 
curred :  he  means  to  say,  that  not  merely  because  of  the  Gen- 
tiles did  punishment  fall  upon  the  righteous,  but  also  for  the 
ti'ansgression  of  my  people  was  there  a  stroke  upon  them — the 
transgressions  of  the  wicked  [amongst  them]  were  partly  also 
the  cause  of  the  righteous  being  in  exile.  The  'servant,'  he 
goes  on,  made  his  grave  loith  the  wicked,  i.  e.  in  accordance  with 
their  plan  and  judgment <=;  and  with  the  rich,  as  though  to  say, 
not  by  the  judgment  of  kings  and  princes  only,  but  even  by 
that  of  ordinary  wealthy  men,  who  likewise  exercised  authority 
over  him.  His  death  is  parallel  to  his  grave:  he  gave  himself  up 
into  their  power,  not  only  for  burial  but  also  for  death.  He 
shall  see  seed,  and  lengtlien  days.  These  words  are  a  proof  that 
by  the  'servant'  are  designated  the  righteous  in  the  days  of  the 
Messiah.  Because  he  poured  out  his  said  to  die.  An  allusion 
to  the  righteous  who  died  in  captivity  on  behalf  of  the  sanctity 
of  God's  name  :  because  he  '  keepeth  mercy  for  thousands '  (Ex. 
xxxiv.  7). 

The  Parashah  is  also  allegorically  expounded  of  the  Messiah ; 
but  I  have  endeavoured  to  explain  it  in  its  natural  sense.  Its 
Midrash  is  as  follows  : — '  He  shall  be  higher  than  Abraham, 
more  exalted  than  Moses,  loftier  than  the  ministering  angels.' 
The  misbelievers,  however,  err,  asserting  that  there  is  none 
higher  than  the  angels  save  God  alone :  but  this  objection  is 
met  by  R.  Mosheh  of  Coucy  (with  whom  common  sense  agrees), 
who  points  out  that  the  just  and  perfect  man  is  in  every  respect 
superior  to  the  angels :  because  the  angels  are  perfect  through 


•>  R.  Lipmann  is  quoting  from  memory ;  there  is  no  and  in  the  Hebrew. 
^  Comp.  above,  pp.  38,  73,  88. 


152  K.  LIPMA.NN   OF   MUHLHAUSEN. 

being  devoid  of  all  evil  passion,  whereas  any  one  who 
suffers  from  evil  passions,  and  is  nevertheless  perfect  in 
spite  of  them,  is  altogether  better  than  they  are.  Nor  is  there 
any  occasion  to  object,  that  the  perfection  of  a  man  cannot 
resemble  the  perfection  of  an  angel :  because  in  Joshua  (v.  1 4) 
it  is  said,  '  I  am  the  captain  of  the  Loi'd's  host :  now  am  I 
come,'  which  is  explained  by  our  Kabbis  thus,  'Now  I  am  come: 
but  Moses  thy  master  had  no  pleasure  in  me,  as  it  is  written 
(Ex.  xxxiii.  15),  If  thy  [God's]  presence  doth  not  go,  take  us 
not  up  hence 'V  which  they  further  explain  by  saying  that  Moses 
himself  took  the  place  of  the  Metatron';*' :  since  then  the  Messiah 
is  more  exalted  than  Moses,  it  is  evident  that  he  is  also  loftier 
than  the  angels. 


<iCf.Qamhi:  'nNaffi  Nin  '3«  D'oyD  »3® 'n«i  nn2? 'nxa  nny  .inN  ®tt 
«?i  'mx  nuTi  (Ex.  xxiii.  20)  "jx'jo  nbiiiJ  ■'ddn  n^n  '«:ir>  -jii  nco  'D'a 
TO  "|3  NbN  yen  'r«  n"apnb  tdnuj  ^J2V  i'?«tc  n:jT.  The  argument  is 
this :  The  angel  who  appeared  to  Joshua  was  the  same  wlio  had  been  'sent' 
(Ex.  xxiii.  20,  of.  xxxiii.  2)  to  accompany  Moses:  Moses,  however,  rejected 
him,  desiring  God's  own  presence  instead  ;  a  distinction  is  thus  shewn  to 
exist  between  God  and  the  highest  angels,  whicVi  renders  it  possible  for  the 
perfection  of  the  latter  to  be  reached  approximately  by  man. 

®  Comp.  above,  p.  13. 


XXIX.    DON  YIZHAQ  ABARBANEL. 

The  thirtieth  prophecy  begins  Avith  the  words,  Behold  my 
servant  .  .  .  ,  and  extends  as  far  as,  Shout,  0  barren  one  (liv.  i), 
thus  occupying  an  entire  Parashah.  I  intend  to  ask  six 
questions  respecting  it. 

I.  The  ^rs<  question  is  to  ascertain  to  whom  it  refers:  for 
the  learned  among  the  Nazarenes  expound  it  of  the  man  who 
was  crucified  in  Jerusalem  at  the  end  of  the  second  Temple,  and 
who,  according  to  them,  was  the  Son  of  God,  and  took  flesh  in 
the  virgin's  womb,  as  is  stated  in  their  writings.  But  Yonathan 
ben  Uzziel  interprets  it  in  the  Thargum  of  the  future  Messiah ; 
and  this  is  also  the  opinion  of  our  own  learned  men  in  the 
majority  of  their  Midrashim,  although  one  of  the  verses  in 
it,  'Thei'efore  I  will  divide  him  a  portion  with  the  many' 
(liii.  12),  is  referred,  as  will  be  there  shewn,  to  Moses  our 
master.  In  the  same  way  I  see  in  the  exposition  of  R.  Mosheh 
ben  Nahman  that  he  explains  the  prophecy  of  the  King 
Messiah.  The  Ga'on,  R.  Sa'adyah,  however,  interprets  it 
entirely  of  Jeremiah,  understanding  /ie  ivill  sprinkle  (Hi.  14) 
in  the  sense  of  dropping  words,  because  Jeremiah  prophesied 
about  many  peoples ;  pointing  out  also  that  the  word  sucker  is 
an  allusion  to  his  '  youth '  (Jer.  i.  6),  that  he  '  bare  the  sin  of 
many '  when  he  '  stood  before '  God  '  to  speak  good  for  them ' 
(xviii.  20),  that  he  was  '  like  a  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter,'  as 
he  says  himself  (xi.  1 9),  and  that  the  words  '  I  will  divide  him 
a  portion  with  the  great'  have  reference  to  the  provisions  with 
which  he  was  every  day  supplied  (xl.  5).      And  R.  Abraham 


154  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [Hi,  liii. 

'Ibn  'Ezra,  as  also  R.  Menahem  [ben  Sli'lomoh]  Me'iri,  speaks 
of  this  interpretation  as  '  excellent ; '  though  what  may  be  the 
goodness  or  excellence  that  they  see  in  it,  I  do  not  understand. 
Rashi,  however,  and  R.  Joseph  Qamhi,  and  his  son,  the  great 
R.  David  Qamhi,  all  with  one  voice  exi)lain  the  entire  pi-ophccy 
of  Israel.  We  ought,  therefore,  to  ascertain  at  the  beginning  of 
our  exposition  the  true  purport  of  the  prophecy,  as  regards  the 
subject  to  whom  it  refers. 

2.  The  second  question  is  to  inquire  into  the  meaning  of  the 
Midrash  on  the  first  verse,  *  He  shall  be  higher  than  Abraham, 
more  exalted  than  Moses,  and  loftier  than  the  ministering 
angels;'  for  although  this  is  explained  of  the  King  Messiah, 
it  is  extremely  difficult  to  understand  how  any  child  of  man 
can  be  exalted  above  Moses,  of  whom  the  Law  bears  wit- 
ness, saying,  'No  prophet  ever  arose  in  Israel  like  him'  (Deut. 
xxxiv.  lo);  still  more  so,  then,  how  any  one  'born  of  woman' 
can  assume  a  position  higher  than  the  angels,  whose  substance 
admits  of  nothing  above  it  except  the  substance  of  the  First 
Cause :  from  the  latter  expression,  in  fact,  Christian  teachers 
have  attempted  to  establish  their  doctrine  of  the  Divinity  of  the 
Messiah.  Nor  can  the  difficulty  be  met  as  was  attenqited  by 
the  learned  En  Bonet*,  who  explained  'ministering  angels'  to 
mean  the  learned,  saying,  '  Who  are  the  ministering  angels  1 
Our  Rabbis  : '  for  how  could  it  ever  enter  any  one's  thoughts 
to  ppeak  of  their  dignity  as  above  that  of  Abraham  and  JMoses  1 
And  the  view  cannot  be  supported  by  what  is  alleged  in  proof 
out  of  Scripture :  for  the  ver.  Ezek.  i.  i8  speaks  simply  of  the 
host  of  heaven ;  how  then  can  it  be  used  as  an  argument  for  the 
signification  liabbis  ? 

3.  The  tJiird  question  is  this :  If,  as  the  expositors  say,  the 
prophecy  is  intended  to  apply  to  Israel,  why  is  Israel  described 
as  a  man — e.g.  '/w's  countenance,'  'he  was  despised,'  'a  man  of 
pains?'  because,  although  a  whole  people,  as  constituting  a 
single  unit,  is  frequently  spoken  of  in  the  singular,  yet  it  is  not 

*  R.  Y'dayah  ha-Penini,  of  Boziers. 


lii,  liii.]  DON    YIZHAQ,   ABAEBANEL.  155 

termed  a  'man;'  for  a  man  would  be  one  of  the  individuals 
Bi)ecified,  and  the  term  by  which  a  particular  part  is  described  is 
different  from  that  which  must  be  used  to  describe  the  whole. 

4.  The  fourth  question  is  concerned  with  the  expressions 
which  speak  of  some  one  as  bearing  the  sins  and  iniquities  of 
others.  If  these  refer  to  Israel,  viewed  in  relation  to  the  other 
nations,  then  a  great  difficulty  arises  in  connexion  with  the 
divine  government  of  the  world,  in  accordance  with  which,  to 
adopt  Ezekicl's  words  (xviii.  20),  'a  son  shall  not  bear  the 
iniquity  of  the  father,  and  a  father  shall  not  bear  the  iniquity 
of  the  son  :'  how  much  less  then  can  one  nation  bear  the 
iniquity  of  another  !  Nor  can  Israel  even  be  said  to  have  borne 
the  sins  of  the  nations  while  in  captivity;  for  what  Jeremiah 
says  (Lam.  v.  7),  '  Our  fathers  sinned,  and  are  not,  and  we  bear 
their  iniquities,'  will  not  apply  here,  but  resembles  rather  Ex, 
XX.  5,  *  visiting  the  iniquity  of  fathers  upon  children,' — visiting 
it,  namely,  if  and  while  the  children  persevere  in  the  deeds  of 
their  fathers. 

5.  The  fifth  question.  "When  the  prophet  says,  '  But  we 
thought  him  stricken,  smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted,'  as  though 
he  were  not  so  really,  how  can  this  be  applied  to  Israel  1  for  in 
the  captivity,  when  the  people  were  punished  for  their  iniquities, 
Israel  was  indeed  '  stricken,  smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted.'  How 
then  can  it  be  implied  that  this  was  not  the  case  ?  The  prophet 
adds,  If  his  soul  makes  a  trespass-offering ;  as  though  it  were 
doubtful  whether  Israel  was  punished  for  his  sins;  yet  that  this 
was  the  case  is  evident  from  the  testimony  and  warnings  of 
the  prophets.  So  also  in  ver.  8  it  is  said,  For  the  transgression 
of  my  people  ivas  lie  stricken,  but  Israel's  stroke  was  for  their 
own  transgressions,  and  not  for  those  of  other  nations. 

6.  The  sixtJi  question  relates  to  ver.  11.  It  is  clear  that 
there  is  nothing  in  the  whole  passage  to  determine  what '  seeing' 
has  to  do  with  the  '  labour  of  his  soul,'  or  what  connexion  there 
is  between  '  being  satisfied '  and  '  seeing,'  or  of  whom  it  is  said 
that  he  will  'justify  many.' — Our  conclusion  must  be  that  the 


156  DON    yiZIIAQ   ABARBANEL.  [Hi,  liii. 

text  requires  to  be  handled  with  the  greatest  care.  For 
my  own  part,  I  shall  endeavour  throughout  to  explain  the 
prophecy  in  such  a  manner  as  to  answer  the  six  questions  just 
propounded.  The  purport  of  the  prophecy,  as  a  whole,  will  be 
discovered  if  we  can  ascertain  the  true  meaning  intended  by 
the  proi)hot,  not  allegorically,  but  in  accordance  with  what  its 
natural  sense  suggests  to  a  fair  and  straightforward  judgment. 
We  must  therefore  examine  each  of  the  opinions  mentioned 
under  the  first  head,  and  inquire  whether  they  agree  with  the 
literal  sense  of  the  words,  and  with  the  general  tenor  of  the 
whole  Parashah. 

The  opinion  held  by  the  learned  among  the  Nazarenes,  then, 
is  that  the  prophecy  refers  to  Jesus  of  Nazai'eth,  who  was  put 
to  death  at  the  end  of  the  second  Temple  :  that  to  him  the 
words  apply,  '  He  shall  be  high,  and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceed- 
ingly ' — according  to  the  Midrash,  *  Higher  than  Abraham,  more 
exalted  than  Moses,  loftier  than  the  angels' — words  which 
cannot  be  true  except  of  the  First  Cause,  who  (Eccl,  v.  7)  is 
'  loftier  than  the  loftiest : '  that  of  him  it  is  said,  '  He  was 
stricken,  smitten,'  etc.  because  he  was  God,  and  was  also  stricken? 
smitten,  and  afflicted :  and  that,  because  he  cancelled  the  penalty 
resting  upon  human  souls  for  the  sin  of  the  first  man,  he  is 
spoken  of  as  '  bearing  their  iniquities,'  and  *  cariying  the  sin  of 
many,'  and  '  interceding  for  transgressors,'  as  is  explained  at 
great  length  in  their  commentaries.  This  opinion,  however,  if 
properly  examined,  possesses  many  weak  points.  i.  It  is 
asserted  that  our  first  parent,  in  agreement  with  his  sin,  was 
punished  sjiiritually  by  his  soul  descending  to  Gehenna,  and 
remaining  there  for  ever;  but  this  is  nowhere  stated  in  Scrip- 
ture, either  at  the  time  when  the  commandment  was  given  to 
him,  or  in  the  nari'ative  of  his  punishment  and  curse.  And  the 
proof  adduced  for  it  from  the  words,  '  Thou  shalt  surely  die,' 
can  be  shewn  to  have  no  force,  from  the  parallel  place  where 
Nathan  says  to  David,  with  reference  to  the  affair  of  Bathsheba, 
'  The  son  that  is  born  to  thee  shall  surely  die'  (2  Sam.  xii.  14) — 


lii,  liii.]  DON    YIZHAQ    ABARBANEL.  157 

as  he  actually  did  die  (ver.  i8):  there  can  be  no  doubt,  however, 
that  Nathan  did  not  sentence  the  child  to  Gehenna.  Abimclcch, 
too,  uses  the  same  expression  (Gen.  xxvi.  ii),  but  without  con- 
demning to  spiritual  death  in  Gehenna  (for  he  was  not  God,  to 
do  that) :  '  thou  shalt  surely  die '  is  like  *  thou  shalt  surely  eat,' 
'thou  shalt  surely  remember'  (Deut.  vii.  i8),  etc.,  the  verb 
being  doubled  to  add  emphasis  to  the  sense.  2.  It  is  admitted 
that  Adam  was  punished  spiritually  for  his  sin;  but  what  have 
the  rest  of  mankind,  who  come  after  him,  done  that  they  also 
should  be  liable  to  Gehenna  1  They  have  not  sinned  themselves, 
and  the  soul  of  the  son  cannot  bear  the  iniquity  of  the  mother, 
for  although  a  man  is  in  his  body  the  son  of  his  father  and 
his  mother,  yet  his  soul  was  not  begotten  by  his  father's  soul : 
rather,  as  is  said  by  the  prophet  in  the  name  of  God,  'As  the 
soul  of  the  father,  so  is  the  soul  of  the  son:  they  are  mine' 
(Ezek.  xviii.  4).  If  then  the  soul  of  Adam  did  wickedly,  while 
the  soul  of  Abraham  did  just  the  reverse  and  clave  to  God,  how 
could  the  divine  justice  punish  both  together,  so  as  for  the 
*  righteous  to  be  as  the  wicked,'  though  each  was  at  its  birth 
pure  and  free  from  every  uucleanness  ?  3.  Even  though  it  be 
agreed  that  the  penalty  was  a  spiritual  one,  and  that  it  em- 
braced Adam's  descendants,  still,  if  it  is  in  God's  pleasui-e  to 
pardon  and  to  forgive,  is  his  arm,  endowed  as  it  is  with  infinite 
strength,  '  shortened '  so  as  to  be  unable  to  save  except  by  his 
clothing  himself  with  flesh  and  undergoing  sufferings  1  Besides, 
'  the  soul  that  sinneth,  it  shall  die '  (Ezek.  xviii.  4)  and  be 
punished :  it  cannot  accord  with  the  order  of  justice,  that  one 
against  whom  others  have  sinned,  should  receive  punishment 
rather  than  the  sinner  himself.  And  if  it  be  I'eplied  that  it 
was  fitting  that  an  isolated  individual  belonging  to  our  i-acc 
should  undergo  the  penalty  in  order  to  atone  for  all  the  rest, 
then  it  was  also  fitting  that  a  man  like  ourselves — some  prophet 
or  wise  man — and  not  the  First  Cause,  the  Blessed  One,  should 
undergo  it  and  suffer.  For  even  if  it  were  true  that  the  First 
Cause  had  taken  flesh,  he  would  not  have  been  a  man  like  one 


158  DON    YIZHAQ    ABARBANEL.  [Hi,  liii, 

of  US :  how  much  more  then  is  the  supposition  self-contradic- 
tory— as  in  fact  is  the  normal  case  with  the  generality  of  their 
arguments — that  the  Deity  should  become  incarnate  1  For  it  is 
impossible  that  the  First  Cause,  who  is  infinite  power,  should 
take  flesh,  and  so  become  finite,  to  cancel  a  spiritual  penalty  not 
mentioned  in  Scripture,  whilst  the  penalties  which  are  men- 
tioned there,  should  continue  to  be  inflicted  upon  mankind. 
Many  other  weak  points  could  also  be  charged  against  the 
above-mentioned  strange  idea,  as  in  fact  has  been  shewn  in 
the  amplest  way  by  E..  Hasdai  in  his  Spanish  work  on  the  con- 
troversies of  religion,  a  work  which  has  been  already  translated 
into  Hebrew.  Now,  if  the  fact  [of  the  incarnation]  is  impossible 
in  itself,  how  can  the  prophet's  words  be  supposed  to  refer 
to  it? 

In  addition  to  this,  however,  the  simple  sense  of  the  words 
themselves  will  not  bear  the  interpretation  put  upon  them. 
And  this  for  several  reasons,  i.  How  could  the  prophet  say 
of  God,  P^aty^  1  If  this  means  '  to  acquire  knowledge '  or  '  intel- 
ligence,' then  God,  just  because  he  is  God,  knows  from  all 
eternity  even  that  which  is  shrouded  in  darkness  :  how  then  can 
the  prophet  testify  of  him,  '  he  ivill  be  intelligent,'  as  though  he 
were  devoid  of  intelligence  now,  but  that  the  time  would  come 
for  him  to  acquire  it  1  And  if  the  word  signifies  '  prosperity ' 
or  'success'  (as  i  Sam.  xviii.  14),  what  was  the  success  which 
came  to  him  as  something  new  1  was  it  in  things  carnal  or  in 
things  spiritual  t  for  '  successful '  and  '  not  successful '  are  terms 
which  cannot  be  rightly  predicated  of  the  First  Cause.  More- 
over, so  far  as  the  manhood  [of  Jesus]  is  concerned,  it  is  evident 
from  the  history  of  his  last  moments,  that  he  did  not  have 
success.  2.  He  is  called  'my  servant.'  Now  how  could  God  call 
one  who  was  of  the  self-same  substance  with  himself,  his 
'servant?'  because  'master'  and  'servant'  are  two  distinct 
terms,  each  exclusive  of  the  other.  And  it  cannot  be  replied 
that  the  word  is  used  relatively  to  his  manhood,  because  both 
the  'prosperity'  named  previously  and  the  'exaltation'  men- 


Hi,  liii.]  DON    YIZHAQ    ABARBANEL.  159 

tioned  directly  afterwards  are  attributes  applicable  to  him  only 
in  so  far  as  he  is  (as  the  Christians  tliiuk)  God  :  the  expression 
'  my  servant,'  therefore,  which  stands  between  the  two  t>,  must 
perforce  be  understood  in  the  same  sense.  An  object  is,  more- 
over, not  defined  or  described  except  by  its  '  form ; '  a  '  man,' 
for  example,  is  so  called  not  on  account  of  his  material  body, 
but  because  of  his  rational  soul  :  even  therefore,  from  the  point 
of  view  of  those  who  assert  that  God  became  incarnate,  he 
could  never  be  termed  a  servant ;  his  name  would,  on  the  con- 
trary, always  be  one  in  some  way  connected  with  his  ultimate 
form  ^.  It  has  also  already  been  pointed  out  by  R.  Abraham 
'Ibn  'Ezra  that  '  servant '  cannot  well  denote  the  body,  because 
the  body,  even  whilst  living,  possesses  no  '  prudence '  or  '  intel- 
ligence.' 3.  Isaiah  says,  He  will  be  '  high  and  exalted,'  the  verbs 
being,  as  you  know,  all  future.  I  wish  I  could  leai-n  whether 
this  '  exaltation '  was  to  shew  itself  in  things  pertaining  to  the 
body  (relatively  to  his  manhood),  or  in  those  pertaining  to  his 
Godhead :  for,  in  so  far  as  his  manhood  was  concerned,  he 
enjoyed  no  exaltation  or  dignity,  but  rather  suffered  humilia- 
tion and  death — which,  in  fact,  the  Christians  say  themselves  is 
foretold  in  this  very  prophecy ;  while  if,  on  the  other  hand,  the 
words  relate  to  his  Godhead,  then  the  announcement  is  an 
idle  one,  for  God,  just  because  he  is  God,  is  for  ever  '  high  and 
exalted,  and  inhabiteth  eternity'  (Ivii.  15):  how  then  can  a 
period  be  predicted  when  he  will  become  high  and  exalted 
afresh  1  4.  He  says  that  his  '  countenance  was  marred  beyond 
man ;'  and  again,  that  '  he  had  no  form  or  comeliness,'  etc.  Such 
phrases  shew  that  he  was  troubled  naturally  by  melancholy,  and 
was  also  of  weak  constitution,  and  a  feeble  frame.  This  account 
of  him,  however,  though  in  agreement  with  what  is  stated  here, 
is  not  in  accordance  with  fact :  for  Jesus  was  young  and  hand- 


''  In  the  Hebrew  the  order  is,  '  Behold  prosperous-shall-be  my  servant, 
he-shall-be-high,'  etc. 

•^  I.e.  with  his  (T5os  as  God,  rather  than  with  his  v\r]  as  man. 


160  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [Hi,  Hii. 

some, — even  their  own  teachers  saying  that  his  constitution  was 
of  a  normal  state.  And  if  the  words  have  reference  to  his 
death,  every  one's  countenance  is  altered  when  he  is  dead :  he 
could  not,  then,  on  this  account  alone,  be  spoken  of  as  '  marred 
beyond  men.'  In  the  same  way  the  words  '  no  form  and  no 
comeliness '  would  be  used  of  one  who  is  yet  living,  and  who  '^ 
is  ordinarily  called  '  a  man  of  pains '  and  '  known  to  sickness,' 
by  which  are  meant  the  pains  and  sicknesses  which  he  was 
accustomed  to,  and  which  he  habitually  bore  :  of  such,  how- 
ever, the  records  about  Jesus  do  not  say  a  single  word.  5.  He 
says,  *  He  hath  borne  our  sicknesses  and  carried  our  pains.' 
These  expressions  cannot  be  understood  of  the  sufferings  borne 
by  the  souls  of  the  just  in  Gehenna  for  the  sin  of  their  first 
parent,  fi'om  which  Jesus  released  them :  because  a  spiritual 
penalty  is  never  called  '  sickness ; '  and  still  more,  because  it  is 
said  that  he  '  bore '  and  '  carried  '  them — for  even  the  Christians 
do  not  venture  to  affirm  that  the  Godhead  bore  the  pains  of 
Gehenna,  The  natural  sense  of  the  words  is  that  he  took  upon 
himself  the  sicknesses  which  he  removed  from  them  ;  accordingly 
it  is  said,  'We  thought  him  smitten,  stricken  of  God,  and 
afflicted' — he  was  not  stricken  and  smitten  himself.  If,  again, 
the  words  be  understood  of  the  sufferings  inflicted  upon  Jesus 
at  the  time  of  his  death,  then  the  terms  themselves  present  a 
difficulty,  for  the  death  brought  about  by  the  Jews  did  not 
consist  of  '  sicknesses  '  or  '  pains ; '  and  the  last  clause,  '  by  his 
stripes,'  etc.,  a  greater  difficulty  still — as  though  such  sick- 
nesses and  pains  had  been  theirs,  but  he  had  taken  them  upon 
himself,  and  so  they  had  been  healed !  6.  How  can  it  be 
asserted  that  the  prophecy  refers  to  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  and 
that  the  words  '  he  was  cut  off  out  of  the  laud  of  the  living ' 
allude  to  his  death,  when  we  find  it  said, '  For  the  transgression 
of  my  people,  thei'e  was  a  stroke  upon  tliem?'  107  is  plural, 
and  indicates  that  the  Parashah  alludes  not  to  an  individual, 

<J  Reading  «im  and  ^V'r^  for  nonn  and  vn  respectively. 


lii,liii.]  DON   YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  161 

but  to  a  multitude;  otherwise,  it  must  have  been  17  '  upon  him.' 
You  ought  also  to  know  that  the  Nazarene  translators,  in  order 
to  escape  this  difficulty,  render  1OT  by  the  singiolar ;  this,  how- 
ever, is  not  correct.  7.  He  says,  '  And  he  made  his  grave  with 
the  wicked.'  This  is  referred  by  the  Christians  to  Jesus  of 
Nazareth,  whose  death  was  accomplished  by  the  hands  of  the 
wicked,  i.  e.  the  Isi'aelites ;  but  according  to  their  view,  it  ought 
to  have  been  '  made  his  death  with  the  wicked,'  not  his  grave; 
for  by  their  own  accounts  he  suffei'ed  no  ill-treatment  at  his 
burial,  but  only  at  his  death.  The  following  words,  '  And  the 
rich  in  his  death,'  have  plainly  nothing  to  do  with  him.  8. 
'The  Lord  was  pleased  to  bruise  him.'  Now,  if  he  had  been 
God,  and  had  consented  to  endure  these  sufferings  in  order  (as 
the  Christians  hold)  to  rescue  the  souls  of  the  saints  from  the 
pit,  how  could  it  be  said  to  be  God's  pleasure  thus  to  bruise  and 
sicken  him  %  moreover,  what  is  done  without  any  assignable 
cause  is  attributed  to  '  pleasure,'  and  not  what  is  done  for  some 
definite  purpose.  Still  less  can  the  next  words  be  understood 
of  God  :  how  could  guilt  or  '  trespass '  be  attributed  to  his 
' soul,'  i.e.  to  the  pui-e  and  absolute  Godhead  1  9.  ' He  shall 
see  seed,  shall  lengthen  days.'  Yet,  according  to  what  is  related 
of  his  life,  Jesus  died  in  youth,  and  had  neither  son  nor 
daughter.  Or,  if  '  seed  '  be  explained  of  those  who  followed  his 
doctrine,  then  such  as  these  are  never  in  the  whole  of  Scripture 
so  named  :  nor  is  justice  done  to  the  expression  '  he  shall  see,' 
which  means  properly  '  he  shall  see  in  his  own  lifetime  his  own 
and  his  children's  sons.'  And,  if  it  be  supposed  to  refer  to  God, 
it  is  well  known  that  God  sees  and  observes  both  the  future  and 
the  past:  how,  then,  can  it  be  said  that  he  ^will  see  seed,'  as 
though  such  '  seeing '  were  something  new  for  him  ?  And  if 
Jesus  died  in  his  youth,  when  not  more  than  thirty-two  years 
old,  where  are  his  '  long  days  V  As  to  the  phrase,  '  The  Lord's 
pleasure  shall  prosper  in  his  hands,'  there  can  be  no  doubt  that 
it  describes  how  a  man  performs  his  pleasure  through  some  one 
else,  and  does  not  denote  what  he  does  in  his  own  person  [; 

u 


162  DON    YfZHAQ    ABAEBANEL.  [Hi,  liii. 

'his,'  therefore,  cannot  refer  to  God].  lo.  He  says,  'Therefore 
I  will  divide  him  a  portion  with  the  many  ;'  but  even  if  this  be 
explained  of  the  many  nations  wlio  have  accepted  his  doctrine 
and  religion,  what  can  be  done  with  the  clause  which  follows  t 
did    this    man    ever    carry    on    war    and    divide    plunder    or 

'  spoil  r 

It  will  be  clear  now  from  these  ten  considerations,  each 
drawn  fi'om  the  words  of  Isaiah  themselves,  to  say  nothing  of 
others  derived  from  the  same  source,  that,  in  accordance  with  its 
simple  and  straightforward  sense,  and  as  rightly  understood, 
this  prophecy  cannot  possibly  be  interpreted  as  is  done  by 
Christian  expositors.  Such  is  the  first  part  of  the  interpreta- 
tion of  the  Parashah. 

As  regards  the  course  taken  by  Yonathan  and  our  other  wise 
men,  who  interpret  it  of  Messiah  our  righteousness,  I  do  not 
know  whether  in  saying  this  they  mean  Messiah  the  son  of 
Joseph,  who  they  believe  is  to  come  at  the  commencement  of 
the  deliverance,  or  whether  they  intend  Messiah  the  son  of 
David,  who  is  to  ai'rive  afterwards.  In  either  case,  however, 
the  natural  sense  of  the  words  will  not  admit  of  such  an  explan- 
ation. Of  Messiah  the  son  of  Joseph,  who  is  to  die  at  the 
outset  of  his  career,  it  could  not  be  said  that  he  would  be  '  high 
and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceedingly;'  such  dignity  as  this  he 
would  never  even  acquire,  still  less  maintain.  The  subject  of 
this  prophecy  is  further  spoken  of  as  having  a  countenance 
'  marred  beyond  men,'  as  being  '  despised,'  '  a  man  of  pains  and 
known  to  sickness  : '  yet  all  this  forms  no  part  of  the  description 
of  the  Messiah  as  given  by  our  own  Rabbis  :  why,  indeed,  should 
it  1  The  meaning  of  '  with  the  rich  in  his  death '  is  also  not  to 
be  ascertained.  And  how  could  it  be  said  of  him  that  he  will 
'lengthen  days,'  when  he  was  to  die  at  the  beginning  of  his 
career  1  If,  on  the  other  hand,  our  Kabbis  have  in  view  Mes- 
siah the  son  of  David,  then  a  difficulty  arises  from  the  words 
'  marred  beyond  man,'  '  without  form  or  comeliness,'  for  Isaiah 
himself,  so  far  from  calling  him  '  despised '  or  '  forlorn  of  men,' 


Hi,  liii.]  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  163 

describes  him  as  God's  '  chosen  one,  in  whom  his  soul  delights ' 
(xlii.  i),  and  as  the  'rod  out  of  the  stump'  of  Jesse,  upon 
whom  'the  spirit  of  the  Lord  rests'  (xi.  2),  and  unto  whom 
'the  Gentiles  will  seek'  (ver.  10).  Then  again,  how  could  he 
be  said  to  have  '  borne  our  pains,'  or  to  be  '  stricken  and 
smitten?'  rather,  he  is  to  be  a  righteous  king — not  'stricken 
and  smitten,'  but  '  righteous  and  victorious '  (Zech.  ix.  9).  And 
if  this  is  the  case,  what  can  be  the  sense  of  the  verses  which 
teach  how  he  Avill  bear  sufferings  and  death  for  Israel's  sake  1 
A  further  difficulty  is  caused  by  ver.  8 ;  for  Messiah,  the  son 
of  David,  Avill  possess  'sovereignty  and  right,'  instead  of  being 
*  taken '  from  it :  nor  will  he  be  '  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of  life,' 
but  rather  reign  there  :  the  plural  ID?  '  upon  them,'  ought  also 
to  be  the  singular  I7  'upon  him.'  And,  lastly,  the  words, 
'  made  his  grave  with  the  wicked,'  are  contradicted  by  what  the 
prophet  says  above  (xi.  i  o),  '  and  the  place  of  his  rest  shall  be 
glorious.'  In  a  word,  the  interpretation  of  Yonathan,  and  of 
those  who  follow  him  in  the  same  opinion,  can  never  be  con- 
sidei'ed  to  be  the  true  one,  in  a  literal  sense,  because  the 
character  and  drift  of  the  passage  as  a  whole  will  not  bear  it : 
these  learned  men  were  only  concerned  with  allegorical  or 
adventitious  expositions,  and  hence  merely  applied  the  tradi- 
tions they  had  received  respecting  the  Messiah  to  the  present 
passage,  without  in  the  least  imagining  such  to  be  its  actual 
meaning.  For  although  our  Rabbis  explain  the  first  verse, 
'  Behold  my  servant  will  deal  prudently,'  etc.,  of  the  King 
Messiah,  yet  the  verses  which  remain  they  apply  exclusively  to 
Israel;  and  the  same  thing  is  done  also  by  Yonathan,  who 
interprets  the  first  few  verses  of  the  Messiah,  and  the  rest  of 
the  chosen  just  ones.  This  transition  is  the  less  difficidt,  since 
many  of  them  expound  the  words,  '  I  will  divide  him  a  portion 
with  the  many,'  of  Moses,  our  master,  who  died  with  the  genei'a- 
tion  of  the  wilderness :  but  they  do  not  on  this  account  aiSrm 
that  the  whole  Parashah  relates  to  him.  And  R.  Mosheh  ben 
Nahman,  although  he  explains  it  of  the  King  Messiah,  states 

M  2 


164  DON    YIZHAQ    ABARBANEL.  [Hi,  liii. 

that  in  his  opinion  it  was  uttered  originally  with  reference  to 
the  congi-egation  of  Israel. 

As  to  the  0])iniou  of  the  Ga'on,  who  supposes  the  prophecy  to 
allude  to  Jeremiah,  I  cannot  in  truth  see  a  single  verse  which 
really  points  to  him.  How  is  it  possible  to  explain  of  Jeremiah 
the  verse,  '  He  shall  be  high  and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceedingly,' 
or,  '  Kingg  will  shut  their  mouths  at  him  ? ' — for  at  the  time 
when  he  lived  the  appearance  of  a  prophet  was  nothing  unusual. 
Or  how  could  it  be  said  of  him,  that  he  *  bare  our  sicknesses,'  or 
that  '  by  his  stripes  we  were  healed,'  or  that  the  iniquity  of  U3 
all  was  '  laid  upon  him,'  as  though  he  suffered  the  entire  penalty, 
and  Israel  escaped  free  1  Nor  do  we  read  in  his  history  any- 
thing of  his  being  stricken  '  for  the  transgression  of  my  people,' 
or  of  his  'making  his  grave  with  the  wicked,'  still  less  of  his 
'  seeing  seed,'  and  having  long  life,  or  '  dividing  spoil  with  the 
mighty : '  not  a  word  of  all  this  can  be  substantiated  from  the 
history.  I  indeed  wonder  greatly  who  can  have  led  the  Ga'on 
into  this  opinion,  and  am  surprised  both  at  him  and  at  the 
scholars  who  applaud  his  exposition.  We  conclude,  then,  that 
all  these  methods  of  inteipretation  are  alien  to  the  subject,  and 
have  no  basis  or  suppoi't  in  the  words  of  Scripture. 

The  opinion  which  ought  to  be  adhered  to,  as  being  the  true 
one,  is  to  be  found  by  one  of  two  courses.  The  Jirst  is  in  har- 
mony with  the  view  which  i-efers  the  prophecy  to  Israel,  who  is 
called  God's  servant,  as  xli.  8,  xlv.  4.  This  course  is  at  once  sug- 
gested by  what  is  said  above,  '  For  the  Lord  goeth  before  them  ' 
(Hi.  1 2),  which  must  necessarily  allude  to  Israel,  and  by  what 
follows  afterwards,  'Shout,  O  barren  one'  (Hv.  i),  which  alludes 
to  Isi'ael  likewise :  this  being  so,  the  intermediate  portion 
cannot  but  be  explained  in  the  same  way,  and  allude  to  Israel 
as  well,  exactly  like  that  which  immediately  precedes  and 
follows  it.  The  Parashah  may  then  be  divided  into  three  parts. 
In  the  Jirst,  extending  from  lii.  13  to  lii.  15,  the  prophet  de- 
scribes the  prosperity  of  the  people  of  Israel,  and  explains  how 
it  will   be  one  of  the  consequences  of  their   subjection   and 


Hi,  liii.]  DON    YIZHAQ    ABAllBANEL.  165 

depression  during  captivity.  The  second,  extending  from  liii,  i 
to  liii.  9,  contains  the  confession  to  be  made  by  the  Gentiles 
at  the  time  of  deliverance,  of  their  transgression  and  sin  for 
having,  in  many  different  modes,  harmed  and  afflicted  Israel. 
The  tliird,  from  liii.  lo  to  the  end,  consists  of  the  prophet's 
own  words,  explaining  the  cause  why  these  sufferings  had 
fallen  on  the  nation,  and  loading  them  to  hope  confidently  for 
the  reward  which  would  ultimately  arrive  for  them.  The 
second  course  is  one  which  has  suggested  itself  to  me,  of  sup- 
posing the  whole  prophecy  to  have  reference  to  Josiah,  king  of 
Judah.  And  now,  the  general  pui'port  of  the  Parashah  having 
been  ascertained,  and  our  first  question  accordingly  solved,  I 
shall  proceed  to  explain  it  literally,  as  well  as  I  can,  according 
to  each  of  these  two  methods. 

With  respect  to  the  Midrash,  '  He  shall  be  higher  than 
Abraham,  lifted  up  above  INIoses,  loftier  than  the  ministering 
angels,'  the  Rabbis  do  not,  in  saying  this,  intend  to  refer  to 
Israel,  but,  as  their  manner  is,  to  expound  the  verse  in  which 
the  words  in  question  occur,  of  the  King  Messiah,  The  ex- 
position itself  occurs  in  the  Midrash  of  R.  Tanchuma*^,  as 
follows:  —  'Who  art  thou,  0  great  mountain?  (Zech,  iv.  7.) 
And  why  does  he  call  him  "the  great  mountain?"  because  he 
is  greater  than  the  patriarchs,  as  it  is  said,  "  My  servant  shall 
be  high  and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceedingly  : " — he  will  be  higher 
than  Abraham,  who  says,  "  I  raise  hic/h  my  hands  unto  the 
Lord"  (Gen.  xiv.  22);  lifted  up  above  Moses,  to  whom  it  is 
said,  "Lift  it  up  in  thy  bosom"  (Num.  xi.  12);  loftier  than 
the  ministering  angels,  of  whom  it  is  written,  "  Their  wheels 
were  lofti/  and  teri-ible  "  (Ez,  i,  18).'  Although,  however,  their 
words,  as  I  have  quoted  them,  refer  to  the  ^Messiah,  and  I  am 
about  to  interpret  the  Parashah  of  Israel,  I  must  not  shrink 
from  explaining  the  saying,  lest  otherwise  the  heretics  come 
and  shelter  themselves  beneath  it.     One  theory  I  have  seen  ^^ 

^  Uf.  above,  p,  9.  '  Cf.  above,  p.  139. 


166  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [Hi,  liii. 

which  accounts  for  the  Hem  before  'Abraham,'  'Moses,'  and 
'  the  Angels,'  by  asserting  that  it  is  not  tlie  Mem  of  superiority 
or  comparison  ('  above  '  or  '  than '),  but  the  Mem  which  indi- 
cates the  cause  or  source,  from  which  the  predicate  named 
proceeds,  and  that  the  intention  of  the  Rabbis  was  thus  to 
express  how  three  kinds  of  perfection  would  be  united  in  the 
King  Messiah ;  firstly,  the  natural  perfection  which  descended 
upon  him  from  Abraham  ;  secondly,  the  perfection  acquired  by 
habit,  and  derived  from  Moses,  in  whose  law  lie  would  be  well 
versed ;  and  thirdly,  a  divine  perfection  to  be  shed  down  upon 
him  in  great  abundance  from  the  Lord  out  of  heaven.  But 
with  this  explanation,  the  words  of  the  Midrash  itself  do  not 
accord.  I  have  already  stated  my  own  view  in  the  treatise 
which  I  have  composed,  entitled,  *  The  Salvation  of  his  Messiah ' 
(II.  III.  i),  and  will  here  repeat  for  you  the  substance  of  it. 
'  Our  wise  men  magnify  the  dignity  of  the  Messiah  under  three 
aspects.  I.  In  relation  to  God,  they  affirm  that  he  will  love 
him,  and  walk  after  him,  and  cleave  to  him,  and  direct  all  his 
actions  to  his  service,  declaring  that  in  these  respects  the 
Messiah  will  attain  a  higher  eminence  even  than  Abraham  our 
father,  who  forsook  "  his  land,  and  his  kindred,  and  his  father's 
house,"  in  order  to  follow  after  God,  and  who  receiveil  the  seal 
of  a  holy  covenant,  saying,  "I  am  the  Lord's"  (Is.  xliv.  5),  who 
to  perform  the  Divine  command  proceeded  to  bind  his  only  son, 
and  who,  after  the  victory  over  the  kings,  was  not  penetrated 
by  any  feeling  of  pride,  or  a  tliirst  for  the  glory  achieved  by 
their  conquest,  or  any  desire  of  their  spoil,  but  said,  "  I  raise 
high  my  hands  unto  the  Lord,  that  I  will  not  take,"  etc.  (Gen. 
xiv.  23),  thereby  implpng  that  the  glory  he  loved  was  not 
carnal  or  material.  The  King  Messiah,  however,  will  be  higher 
in  the  fear  and  love  of  God  even  than  Abraham :  as  the 
prophet  says  (Is.  xi.  2,  3,  5),  "  The  spirit  of  the  Lord  shall  rest 
upon  him,  the  spirit  of  knowledge  and  the  fear  of  the  Lord, 
and  his  delight  shall  be  in  the  fear  of  the  Lord,"  and  "  righteous- 
ness shall  be  the  girdle  of  his  loins,"  etc.     2.  lu  relation  to  the 


lii,  liii.]  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  167 

people,  whom  the  Messiah,  being  "mighty  to  save"  (Ixiii.  i),  will 
redeem  and  rescue,  it  is  affirmed  that  he  will  be  "  lifted  up  above 
Moses  " — not,  however,  in  virtue  of  his  rank  as  a  prophet,  or 
lawgiver,  or  of  any  of  the  other  offices  by  which  that  lord 
of  the  prophets  is  elevated  above  the  rest  of  mankind,  but 
from  the  fact  of  his  collecting  together  the  several  captivities 
of  Israel,  and  then  redeeming  and  conducting  them  into  their 
land.  For  although  Moses,  our  master,  brought  Israel  forth  out 
of  Eg)^t  and  carried  them  to  the  land  which  the  Lord  had 
sworn  unto  their  fathers  "  as  a  nurse  lifteth  tip  and  carrieth  a 
sucking  child  "  (Num.  xi.  1 2),  yet  the  future  deliverance  will  be 
greater  even  than  this :  because  in  Egypt,  the  Israelites  were 
at  least  all  collected  on  one  spot,  and  near  to  their  own  land, 
whereas  the  King  Messiah  will  gather  together  the  outcasts  of 
Judah  and  Israel,  who  are  scattered  abroad,  from  one  end  of 
heaven  to  the  other.  In  view  of  the  perfection  thus  to  be 
exhibited  relatively  to  the  people,  they  say,  "  He  will  be  lifted 
up  above  Moses,"  appealing  in  proof  of  the  Midrash  to  the 
words  addressed  to  him  [1.  c),  "Lift  it  up  in  thy  bosom,  as  a 
nurse  lifteth  up  a  sucking  child,"  which  refer  to  the  deliverance 
of  the  nation,  and  their  guidance  to  the  promised  land.  3.  In 
relation  to  the  Gentiles,  it  is  asserted  that  he  will  prevail  over 
them  and  destroy  them  ;  for  although  their  heavenly  "  princes  " 
(Dan.  X.  1 3, 20,  2 1)  will  pour  down  all  blessings  upon  them,  still  the 
hand  of  the  King  Messiah  will  prevail,  till  the  annies  of  the  sky 
are  annihilated  before  him.  And  so  our  Eabliis  say,  "  The  Lord 
doth  not  avenge  himself  upon  any  nation  until  he  has  avenged 
himself  upon  its  God  g."  The  King  Messiah  will  be  in  the  midst 
of  his  people  as  one  of  the  host  of  heaven,  or  as  one  of  the 
pi  inces  who  protect  the  various  nations  ujjon  earth ;  for  just 
as  these  heavenly  princes  receive  abundant  power  according  to 
their  rank,  and  shed  it  down  upon  the  nations  they  protect, 
and  just  as  their  own  strength  joins  battle  with  that  of  the 

B  See  Mekhilta,  on  Ex.  zv.  i. 


168  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [Hi.  13. 

other  princes  who  come  to  oppose  them  (as  is  described  in 
Daniel,' X.  20,  xii.  i),  so  the  King  Messiah  wall  receive  power  from 
the  First  Cause  in  abundance,  and  will  pour  down  upon  his 
people  prosperity,  glory,  and  continual  peace,  putting  to  nought 
the  forces  of  all  those  princes  who  oppose  him.  And,  therefore, 
they  rank  the  Messiah  together  with  the  ministering  angels, 
meaning  by  these,  the  guardian  princes  of  the  various  nations, 
upon  each  of  whom  are  conferred  abundant  blessings  by  the 
Creator,  but  who  will  be  inferior  in  dignity  to  the  Messiah. 
And  this  upon  two  accounts;  firstly,  because  the  abundance 
destined  for  the  Messiah  is  sent  down  upon  him  directly  from 
God,  whereas,  in  the  case  of  the  other  princes,  it  is  transmitted 
through  a  series  of  intermediate  agencies  ;  and  secondly,  because 
when  the  crisis  comes,  the  strength  of  the  other  nations  will  be 
destroyed  and  avail  them  nothing — the  cord  of  mercy  being 
severed  which  had  before  been  extended  to  them  out  of  heaven, 
while  the  strength  of  the  Messiah,  on  the  contrary^  will  increase 
and  be  confirmed,  God  pouring  out  upon  him  "  a  spiiit  from  on 
high"  (xxxii.  15).  And  so,  because  the  Messiah  as  he  fights 
with  the  other  nations  will  annihilate  the  powers  of  heaven, 
they  say  that  he  is  "loftier  than  the  angels.'" 

Such  is  the  explanation  of  this  Midrash,  which  commends 
itself  to  me,  when  the  first  verse  is  expounded  of  the  King 
Messiah ;  and  with  it  our  second  question  receives  its  solution. 
After  these  preliminaries,  we  may  proceed  to  the  exposition  of 
the  text,  in  accordance  with  the  first  method  mentioned  above, 
which  supposes  it  to  allude  to  the  congregation  of  Israel. 

LIT.  ^^''^''  These  verses  form  the  first  subdivision  of  the  Avhole 
Parashah,  in  which  the  prophet  relates  the  successes  which  will 
attend  the  nation  at  the  time  of  its  redemption  :  the  promise  of 
redemption  had  been  just  given  (ver.  12),  and  here  the  exalted 
titles  are  described,  to  which  the  people  of  Israel  Avill  possess  a 
claim  at  the  period  of  its  fulfilment.  Israel  is  addressed  as  «iy 
servajit,  because  of  the  many  gi-ievous  years  of  exile  which  it 
endured  for  the  honour  of  God,  without  forsaking   his  ordi- 


Hi.  13,]  DON    YIZITAQ   ABARBANEL.  169 

nances  and  his  service,  like  a  servant  true  to  his  master.  The 
prophet  says  that,  during  the  captivity,  the  people  were  despoiled 
of  foxir  great  privileges  which  they  had  previously  enjoyed 
while  the  'friendship  of  God  was  over  their  tents'  (Job.  xxix. 
4).  The yirsf  privilege  was  wisdom  and  knowledge;  for  whereas 
before  they  had  been  'a  wise  and  prudent  people,'  after  they 
had  gone  into  exile  '  the  wisdom  of  their  wise  men  perished, 
and  the  prudence  of  their  prudent  ones  was  hidden;'  or,  as  the 
Psalmist  says,  complaining  of  the  loss  (Ps.  Ixxiv.  9),  '  With  us 
tliere  is  none  that  knoweth  how  long.'  The  second  privilege 
was  the  possession  of  royal  power ;  instead  of  being  '  higher 
than  the  kings  of  the  earth'  in  dominion  and  power,  during 
captivity  they  'sat  on  the  earth  in  silence'  (Lam.  ii.  10),  and 
passed  from  the  extreme  of  glory  and  powei%  to  the  extreme  of 
hnmiliatiou  and  decay.  The  third  privilege  was  the  gift  of 
pi'ophecy:  whereas,  formerly,  there  had  been  amongst  them 
'  an  assemblage  of  prophets,'  and,  in  consequence  of  the  presence 
of  the  Ark  and  of  the  Sh'khinali  in  their  midst,  the  power  of 
pi'ophesying  hail  grown  great  and  manifested  itself  every  day, 
when  they  went  into  exile  they  '  found  no  vision  of  the  Lord ' 
(Lam.  il.  9)  ;  or,  as  the  Psalmist  says  in  his  complaint,  '  There  is 
no  prophet  left'  (Ps.  Ixxiv.  9).  And  the  fourth  privilege  was 
the  possession  of  the  Sh'khinali,  for  by  its  mediation  they  were 
able  to  adhere  to  him  who  is  'loftier  than  the  loftiest'  (Qoh. 
V.  7),  as  he  testifies,  'And  I  have  brought  you  to  me'  (Ex. 
xix.  4),  but  when  they  entered  into  captivity,  he  hid  his  face 
from  them,  the  Sh'khinah  departed  from  them,  and  stood  far 
offt',  and  whereas  before  they  had  been  cleaving  upwards,  he 
now  cast  down  the  beauty  of  Israel  from  heaven  upon  earth 
and  removed  them  fi-om  him :  Isaiah  promises,  however,  that 
at  the  future  time  of  deliverance,  the  nation  will  again  become 
fully  worthy  of  these  four  privileges.  With  reference  to  the 
first  he  says,  '  Behold  my  servant  shall  be  ijrudent : '  although 


"•  Literally,  'ten  stations:'  see  Talmud  of  Bab.,  Rosh  hash-Skanak,  31*. 


170  DON    YIZIIAQ    ABAIJBANEL.  [Hi.  14. 

now,  while  in  exile,  it  is  like  a  *  foolish  people,'  lilce  a  '  silly 
dove  without  sense,'  yet,  at  the  time  of  redemption,  it  will 
acquire  knowledge,  or,  as  the  angel  says  to  Daniel  (xii.  10), 
'  They  that  are  prudent,  shall  have  understanding.*  "With 
reference  to  the  second  he  says,  he  shall  be  high:  this  relates 
to  his  rising  up  out  of  the  affliction  and  depression  of  exile,  and 
advancing  to  the  royal  tin-one.  The  verb  to  he  high  is  used  of 
the  subjugation  of  territory  and  elevation  to  the  throne,  as 
Ps.  xxxvii.  34,  '  He  will  raise  thee  on  high  to  inherit  the  earth;' 
and  xcii.  11,  'My  horn  is  high,  like  the  horn  of  a  buffalo  :'  it 
is  as  though  the  prophet  had  said,  '  This  people,  which  hitherto 
has  been  in  the  deepest  depression,  will  at  that  time  attain  to 
royal  power,  and  be  exceedingly  exalted.'  With  reference  to 
the  third  he  says,  and  lifted  up,  which  alludes  to  prophecy,  as 
in  2  Kings  ix.  25,  'And  the  Loi'd  lifted  iip  against  him  this  burden,' 
as  though  to  say,  that  although  Israel  had  continued  ever  so 
many  years  in  exile  without  any  prophet,  yet  you  will  see  the 
time  come  when  he  will  again  begin  to  prophesy,  and  to  receive 
and  lift  up  the  burden  from  God.  And  with  reference  to  the 
fourth  he  says,  and  lofty  exceedingly,  i.  e.  although  in  captivity 
Israel  were  far  removed  from  their  God,  at  the  time  of  the 
deliverance  he  will  raise  himself  aloft.  The  word  lofty  is  not 
correctly  used  except  in  reference  to  the  elevation  arising  from 
adherence  to  God,  according  to  the  use  of  the  term  Job  xxii.  12, 
'  Is  not  God's  the  loftiness  of  heaven  V  Ps.  cxiii.  5,  'Who  maketh 
lofty  his  dwelling;'  Qoh.  v.  7,  'Loftier  than  the  loftiest.'  Thus, 
in  concise  language,  the  prophet  announces  the  four  promised 
privileges  of  which  the  future  nation  will  be  deemed  worthy. 
^*  In  this  verse  there  is  an  instance  of  what  I  have  often  named 
to  you,  the  habit  of  the  prophets  to  speak  at  one  moment  iu 
the  second  person,  and  at  another  in  the  third :  so  here,  Isaiah, 
addressing  Israel,  says  at  thee,  though  the  rest  of  the  Parashah 
is  in  the  third  person, — '  his  countenance,'  '  he  will  sprinkle,'  etc. 
The  answer  to  'As  they  were  astonished,'  is  not  so  marred .  .  . , 
but   so   vrill  lie   sprinkle,   the    meaning   (as   the   commentators 


Hi.  15.]  DON    YI/HAQ    ABARBANEL.  171 

exj)lain)  being  this,  that  as  many  nations  were  astonished  at 
thee  (according  to  the  prediction  of  Moses,  our  master,  in  his 
imprecation,  Lev.  xxvi.  33),  astonished,  namely,  at  thy  depres- 
sion and  evil  destiny,  and  the  attacks  of  thy  enemies  (and  this, 
too,  not  without  reason,  so  marred  was  Israel's  countenance 
beyond  man,  and  his  form  beyond  the  sons  of  men),  ^^  so,  in 
spite  of  being  thus  niinished,  he  will  scatter  and  conquer  many 
nations:  in  other  words,  the  exaltation  of  Israel  at  the  latter 
end  will  be  in  exact  proportion  to  their  previous  humiliation 
and  decay.  T\V,  however,  may  perhaps  have  the  same  force  as 
Ixiii.  3,  and  signify  that  he  will  shed  or  'spi'inkle'  their  blood. 
R.  David  Qamlii  and  his  father  explain  the  word,  like  V^U* 
'  drop,'  Amos  vii.  1 6  etc.,  of  speech,  the  meaning  then  being, 
that  he  will  cause  them  to  speak  about  himself,  from  astonish- 
ment at  his  sudden  elevation.  This  view  is  suggested  by  the 
following  IVDp^  i.  e.,  properly,  'they  will  speak  with  great 
bounds  or  leaps '  resj)ecting  him,  and  by  the  words,  ivhat  had 
not  been  told  them  they  have  seen,  i.  e.  what  had  never  been  told 
them  at  any  time,  as  having  happened  to  any  other  people, 
they  now  see  realised  in  Israel,  and  u'liat  they  had  not  heard  of 
as  having  ever  occurred  before,  they  now  perceive  in  his  case — 
the  last  clause  repeating  the  former  in  different  words.  It 
would  be  more  correct,  in  my  judgment,  to  explain  'what 
had  not  been  told  them  have  they  seen,'  of  the  privileges 
granted  to  Israel  -while  the  first  Temple  yet  stood,  and  '  what 
they  had  not  heard  of  they  have  perceived,'  of  the  new  life 
they  entered  on  at  the  time  of  the  second  Temple.  And  this 
is  the  only  suitable  way  according  to  the  literal  sense  of  the 
verses,  though  Rashi  supposes  the  meaning  to  be,  that  the 
kings  will  close  their  mouths  in  amazement.  In  case,  however, 
you  do  not  like  to  assume  this  transition  from  the  second  to 
the  third  person,  jo\x  may  explain  the  woi'ds  at  thee  as  not 
referring  to  Israel  at  all,  but  to  the  nations ;  for  having  just 
before  (lii.  11)  said,  'Touch  not  that  which  is  unclean,'  meaning 
by  this  the  Gentiles,  whose  corruption  will  cause  them,  at  the 


172  DON    YIZIIAQ    ABARBANEL.  [liii.  i. 

time  of  their  destruction  and  fall,  to  be  treated  as  unclean,  the 
prophet  here  continues,  As  many  loere  astonished  at  thee,  i.  e. 
'  As  many,  O  thou  unclean  enemy,  wore  astonished  at  thee  in 
thy  fall,  so  was  his  countenance — the  countenance  of  Israel  mj 
servant' — whom  he  has  just  mentioned — 'marred  beyond  men; 
and  as  thou  didst  corrujjt  Israel,  it  is  only  just  that  so  he 
should  sprinkle  many  nations,  in  order  that  what  thou  hast 
done  to  others  should  be  done  to  thee,  and  that  thy  dealings 
towards  them  should  come  back  upon  thy  own  head.' — Here  the 
first  subdivision  ends. 

LIII.  ^"^  This  forms  the  second  subdivision,  in  which  the 
prophet  narrates  the  language  of  the  kings  as  they  cry  out  in 
their  amazement :  Who,  they  say,  hath  believed  our  report  ?  and 
zq)on  whom  is  the  arm  of  the  Lord  revealed?  The  question 
relates  to  the  occurrence  of  two  new  and  marvellous  facts.  The 
first  of  these  is  the  ruin  of  high  and  mighty  nations  who  have 
fallen  from  heaven  so  that  the  fire  consumeth  them :  lo/io 
believeth  tlte  report  of  our  exaltation  and  imperial  power,  now 
that  we  are  like  fish  caught  in  a  net,  or  like  the  cities  which 
God  overthrew  in  the  day  of  his  fierce  anger  1  (cf.  Deut.  xxix. 
22.)  R.  Abraham  'Ibn  'Ezra,  however,  explains  the  first  part 
of  the  question  thus  : — Who  ever  believed  this  report  which  we 
now  hear  of  the  success  and  prosperity  of  Israel  1  The  second 
of  these  new  facts  is  the  revelation  of  the  arm  and  power  of 
the  Loi-d — upon  whom  ?  It  might  have  been  expected  that  it 
would  be  i-evealed  upon  the  possessors  of  some  exalted  or  kingly 
ofiice,  but  the  Lord  chose  rather  'a  people  spoiled  and  des- 
pised' for  it  to  be  revealed  to.  This,  then,  is  the  second 
wonder,  that,  after  the  Holy  One  had  willed  to  '  create  a  new 
thing  in  the  earth,'  and  to  shew  forth  his  infinite  power,  the 
revelation  was  made  to  a  people  depressed  and  despised. 
Another  explanation  is,  however,  also  possible  :  inasmuch  as, 
at  the  time  alluded  to,  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  world  will 
recognise  that  'the  kingdom  is  the  Lord's,'  and  that  the  law 
of  Moses  is  the  truth,  they  will  repent  and  give  up  their  old 


liii.  2.]  DON    YTZHAQ    ABAEBANEL.  173 

convictions,  confessing  that  tlieir  '  fathers  have  inherited  vanity  ' 
(Jer.  xvi.  19),  and  wondering  at  their  predecessors,  who,  being 
possessed  of  knowledge,  nevertheless  persuaded  them  to  trust 
to  the  false  beliefs  promulgated  by  themselves.  By  way  of 
reproof  for  this,  they  hei'e  ask,  Who  hath  believed  our  report  ? 
i.  e.  Who  is  there  that  has  given  his  adherence  to  the  words 
expounded  and  accepted  amongst  us  1  '  For,'  they  continue, 
alluding  to  Moses,  of  whom  it  is  said,  that  God  '  made  the 
arm  of  his  glory  [i.  e.  the  law]  journey  at  his  right  hand' 
(Ixiii.  12),  'the  arm  of  the  Lord  and  his  majesty  was  already, 
in  the  days  of  old,  revealed  upon  one,  viz.  upon  Moses ;  and 
if  so,  who  is  the  man,  and  where  is  he,  that  has  established  our 
beliefs  !  and  who  hath  believed  the  report  Avhich  we  received 
from  him  !'  ^At  the  redemption  of  Israel  they  will  say,  Ajid 
he  came  up  like  a  sucker  before  him,  and  like  a  root  out  of  the 
dry  earth.  The  two  comparisons  are  dissimilar  in  character ; 
a  '  sucker '  is  the  name  for  a  young  child  sucking  his  mother's 
breasts — or  if  the  word  denotes  a  shoot,  as  Hos.  xiv.  7,  it  is 
still  used  of  something  as  it  begins  to  shoot  up — whereas  a 
'  root '  is  different,  being  spoken  of  as  '  waxing  old  in  the  earth ' 
(Job  xiv.  8).  This  being  so,  a  '  sucker '  is  the  opposite  of  a 
'  root,'  and  it  is  difficult  to  understand  why  the  two  similes 
should  both  have  been  selected,  being  so  different  in  themselves. 
The  meaning  of  the  verse  is,  however,  this  :  Do  you  not  see, 
they  will  say,  how  the  people  of  Israel  sprang  uji  before  him 
as  a  suckling — i.  e.  like  a  child  for  him  to  play  with,  and  so 
quick  was  its  growth,  that  it  was  like  a  people  whom  he  had 
just  chosen  for  himself  (as  was  the  case  with  those  who  came 
out  of  Egj'^pt),  and  upon  whom,  therefore,  he  multi})lied  won- 
drous blessings?  (Here  p3V  is  used  as  in  the  passage  from 
Hosea.)  It  is  not  so,  however,  now  :  now  they  are  like  a  root 
out  of  the  dry  earth,  because,  after  the  many  thousand  years  he 
has  caused  them  to  spend  in  captivity  (the  '  dry  earth '),  so  that 
they  are  no  longer  a  young  child  to  be  played  with,  but  an  old 
root,  they  are  dried  up  like  an  aged  tree,  and  cease  to  possess 


174  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [liii.  3. 

any  more  the  beauty  which  is  peculiar  to  children,  and  which 
makes  men  love  to  play  with  them ;  for  he  has  no  form  and  no 
comeliness,  i.  e.  no  fair  or  beautiful  form,  and  we  looked  at  him, 
and  can  therefore  attest  ourselves  that  this  is  so,  and  that  no 
superiority  or  perfection  can  be  discerned  in  him.  If,  then,  it 
is  the  case,  that  he  thus  has  no  beauty,  could  we  be  expected  to 
desire  him,  being  such  a  child  as  he  is  1 — All  this  is  intended 
to  emphasize  their  first  expression  of  wonder,  lie  came  up  like 
a  suckling  before  him.  ^  They  will  further  say.  He  tvas  despised 
and  forlorn  of  men,  i.  e.  despised  by  other  nations,  and  deserted 
by  men,  viz.  by  men  of  valour,  so  that  none  were  left  in  his 
midst.  The  phrase  D^C^''X  ?^^  may,  however,  also  be  inter- 
preted ceasing  from  men,  in  allusion  to  the  edicts  by  which  the 
Gentiles  expelled  Israel  from  their  lands,  each  king  and  city 
saying,  Rise  uji,  and  go  forth  out  of  the  midst  of  my  people ; 
such  expulsions  would  be  included  in  the  expression,  because, 
when  they  took  place,  Israel  ceased  to  dwell  amongst  men.  It 
is,  then,  as  though  they  had  said.  Not  only  has  Israel  no  form 
or  comeliness  that  we  should  desire  him,  but  we  even  despise 
him  and  expel  him  from  our  lands,  because  he  is  a  man  of 
pains  and  knoion  to  sickness.  R.  Abraham  'Ibn  'Ezra  main- 
tains that  the  '  pains '  and  '  sickness '  intended  are  the  miseries 
of  the  captivity.  It  is  more  correct  to  say,  that  on  account  of 
the  severity  of  the  captivity  and  its  attendant  miseries,  the 
Jews,  more  than  other  men,  laboured  under  a  continual  suc- 
cession of  sicknesses — whether  melancholy  or  emerodsi  (to 
which  they  are  said  to  be  especially  liable),  or  fevers  attended 
by  fits  of  persjiiration,  which  we  also  know  from  experience 
attack  them :  to  all  these  the  Jews  were  so  much  exposed,  and 
suffered  so  much  more  from  them  than  other  nations,  that  it  is 
said,  '  The  Lord  shall  make  the  pestilence  cleave  to  thee '  (Deut. 
xxviii.  21),  in  allusion  to  the  persistent  character  of  such 
diseases.     And,  therefore,  the  prophet  applies  to  them  the  term 

'  Dmman  dn  seems  to  have  dropped  out  after  mimi'n. 


liii.  3.]  DON    \I/,HAQ   ABAB.BANEL.  175 

'  niaii  of  ])ains:'  and  tliese  pains  were  such,  that  we  hid  our 
face>i  from  him  in  order  not  to  see  him,  because  he  was  despised 
and  we  esteemed  him  not.  Or,  perhaps,  the  meaning  is,  that  the 
pious  among  them  were  hiding  their  faces,  so  as  not  to  h)ok 
upon  the  features  of  a  Jew  :  for  this  would  have  been  accounted 
by  them  as  '  iniquity  for  a  judge.'  The  Nazarene  expositors 
reject  the  idea  that  C'"'N  ('  man ')  can  be  used  of  a  jpeojple,  alleg- 
ing that  it  denotes  some  definite  individual,  and  not  a  whole 
species  or  genus ;  in  truth,  however,  this  objection  arises  from 
nothing  but  their  slender  acquaintance  with  Scrij)ture ;  for,  is 
it  not  written,  'And  the  men^  of  Israel  were  mustered'  (Judg. 
XX.  17),  'And  the  men  of  Israel  Avent  out'  (ver.  20),  and  similarly 
vers.  22,  38,  xxi.  i,  i  Sam.  xiii.  6,  xiv.  24,  xvii.  2,  and  often  1 
And  who  can  exclude  the  expression  here  from  the  same  cate- 
gory ]  Israel  having  l)een  throughout  the  Parashah  spoken  of, 
as  by  a  parable,  in  the  singular,  this  fact,  of  itself,  causes  him 
necessarily  to  be  treated  as  an  individual  man.  Or,  perhajis, 
we  may  say  that  B'''N  is  not  used  in  the  Parashah  with  reference 
to  Israel  at  all :  in  lii.  14,  '  beyond  men,'  other  people  are  clearly 
intended,  and  in  the  i:)resent  verse  the  meaning  may  be  that 
not  only  was  he  despised  and  forsaken  by  all  the  noble,  hand- 
some, and  robust  men  among  the  Gentiles,  but  even  the  man 
who,  in  his  own  person,  and  by  natm-al  constitution,  was  dis- 
figured and  loathsome  from  the  impurity  of  illness,  was  like 
one  hiding  his  face  from,  Israel :  an  unclean  alien,  Avho  could 
be  designated  as  a  '  man  of  pains  and  known  to  sickness,'  was, 
nevertheless,  as  one  who  hid  his  face  from  him.  1  before  "^DDM 
will  then  be  equivalent  to  ^^^1 ,  as  in  the  many  parallels  adduced 
by  R.  Yonah  1. — The  prophet  next  names,  similarly,  '  the  des- 
pised,' i,  e.  the  man  of  no  reputation  and  of  insignificant  rank, 


k  Lit.  '  and  the  man  of  Israel,' — the  verb  being  indifferently  either  sing, 
or  pi.  This  peculiarity  of  the  Hebrew  idiom  is  sometimes  preserved  literally 
in  the  LXX,  as  koI  dvrjp  'Icrpai^X  eirtcrKt-rrrjcrav,  Judg.  xx.  17,  etc. 

'  See  the  Eiqmah,  p.  22  (ed.  Goldberg). 


176  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [liii.  4. 

in  order  to  indicate  that  there  were  such  among  the  Gentiles, 
who,  though  poor  and  afflicted  themselves,  still  held  Israel  in 
no  estimation  whatever.  He  says,  '  We  esteemed  him  not,'  in 
the  plural,  to  shew  that  he  desires  to  embrace  the  whole  of 
them ;  as  though  he  had  written,  '  Small  and  great  alike,  we 
held  Israel  in  no  esteem.'  Or  'despised'  may  be  explained 
as  referring  to  Israel ;  the  complete  sentence  will  then  run 
thus  : — He  was  despised  and  forsaken  of  men,  and  even  the  man 
of  i)ains  and  known  to  sickness  hid  his  face  from  him,  because 
he  (i.  e.  Israel)  was  despised  amongst  us,  and  we  esteemed  him 
not.  According  to  Eashi,  the  words  D^33  "iDDtDD  mean  that 
Israel,  when  he  saw  himself  despised  and  depressed,  stricken 
and  afflicted,  kid  and  concealed  himself  from  the  eyes  of  the 
Gentiles,  in  order  that  they  might  not  look  at  him.  And  this 
view  is  correct.  *  The  kings  now  enumerate,  in  their  discourse, 
the  various  kinds  of  calamity  and  misfortune  which  Israel  suf- 
fered in  captivity :  these  are  four  in  number.  The  Jirst  com- 
prises the  bodily  hardships  which  the  Gentiles  imposed  upon 
them:  of  these  it  is  said,  I/e  hath  carried  our  sicknesses,  and 
home  our  i^ains.  The  true  explanation  of  these  words,  in  my 
opinion,  is  not,  as  is  done  by  the  commentators,  to  refer  the 
pronoun  to  the  nations,  as  though  the  sicknesses  and  pains 
were  to  be  felt  by  them ;  for  a  state  or  condition  may  be  spoken 
of  as  belonging  to  the  agent  who  is  instrumental  in  creating  it, 
no  less  than  to  the  recipient  upon  whom  it  is  j)roduccd.  Ac- 
cordingly it  is  said,  '  I  have  heard  thy  prayer '  (Is.  xxxviii.  5), 
'  A  prayer  by  the  afflicted '  (Ps.  cii.  i ),  where  the  person  pray- 
ing, or  in  affliction,  is  the  author  of  the  prayer ;  but  also,  '  I 
will  make  them  glad  in  the  house  of  my  prayer'  (Is.  Ivi.  7), 
where  the  prayer  is  attributed  to  God  as  being  its  recipient : 
and  similarly,  '  Thou  art  my  king,  0  God '  (Ps.  xliv.  5),  i.  e.  the 
king  who  reigns  over  me,  but,  '  I  have  set  my  king '  (ii.  6), 
viz.  the  king  whom  I  have  appointed  as  my  deputy.  So,  again, 
the  destruction  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrha  is  sometimes  assigned 
to  God  who  brought  it  to  pass,  as,  '  Like  God's  overthrow  of 


liii.  5.J  BOX    YIZHAQ   ABAUBANEL.  177 

Sodom  and  Gomorrha'  (Is.  xili.  19);  and  sometimes  to  the 
cities  as  its  recipients,  as,  '  Like  the  overthrow  of  Sodom  and 
Gomorrha'  (Jer.  xHx.  18).  In  the  same  way,  in  the  expressions 
'  our  sicknesses,'  '  our  pains,'  it  is  possible  that  the  pronoun  may 
indicate  the  patient  who  experiences  the  sicknesses  and  pains ; 
but  it  is  also  possible  that  it  may  indicate  the  agent  who  is 
their  cause.  And  inasmuch  as  mention  has  just  been  made  of 
Israel's  being  '  a  man  of  pains  and  known  to  sickness,'  it  seems 
probable  that  the  kings  and  others  who  are  here  speaking 
would  state  who  was  the  author  of  their  suffering  thus  in  exile : 
and  so  the  prophet  says,  'Surely  he  has  carried  our  sicknesses' 
etc.,  i.  e.  Of  a  truth  the  sicknesses  carried  by  him  in  exile  were 
caused  by  us,  and  the  pains  which  he  there  bore  were  our  pains, 
i.  e.  proceeding  from  us,  and  passing  on  to  them.  Yet  we  did 
esteem  him  stricken,  smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted,  we  thought 
that  these  sicknesses  and  pains  proceeded  from  God  for  their 
punishment,  but  it  was  not  so  ;  they  proceeded  from  us,  and  we 
were  their  cause.  ^  After  mentioning  this  first  class  of  bodily 
hardships,  the  pains  and  sicknesses  which  came  by  natural 
agency,  they  pass  on  to  speak  of  those  which  they  themselves 
inflicted  upon  them  purposely  while  in  exile,  '  blows,  and  stripes, 
and  fresh  sores,'  saying,  'He  was  wounded  for  our  trans- 
gressions,' etc.,  i.  e.  '  Israel  also  received  other  indignities, 
being  wounded  and  bruised  for  our  wickedness  and  iniquities  : 
for  in  the  malignity  of  our  purpose,  and  the  multitude  of  our 
transgressions,  we  were  ever  wreaking  destruction  in  their 
midst.'  The  following  words  are  explained  by  E.  Abraham 
'Ibn  'Ezra  as  signifying  that  the  chastisement  which  was  to 
guarantee  the  perpetuation  of  our  peace  was  upon  him,  i.  e. 
acted  destructively  against  him,  for  by  his  stripes  we  are  healed — 
so  long,  viz.  as  the  Gentiles  are  in  prosperity,  there  is  trouble 
for  Israel,  but  when  God  delivers  Israel,  there  will  be  a  time 
of  distress  for  the  Gentiles,  and  therefore  it  is  said  that 
'through  Israel's  stripes  there  is  healing  for  us.'  In  my 
judgment,  however,  the  kings  and  Gentiles  rather  speak  thus : — 


178  DON    YIZIIAQ   ABARBANEL.  [Hii.  6- 

We  inflicted  all  this  misfortune  upon  Israel,  because  by  the 
fault  of  those  who  were  our  teachers,  and  who  expounded  and 
determined  for  us  our  law,  all  the  instruction  (correction)  which 
they  imparted  for  the  perpetuation  of  our  peace  was  directed 
against  liim,  i.  e.  against  Israel  :  they  taught  us,  namely,  inces- 
santly that  by  his  stripes  we  were  healed;  in  other  words,  that 
when  the  '  stripes  of  a  wound,'  which  are  the  '  clearing  of  an 
evil '  (Prov.  xx.  30),  were  inflicted  on  him,  there  would  be  heal- 
ing and  peace  for  our  souls :  on  this  account,  therefore,  we  were 
desirous  for  his  destruction.  "  In  spite,  however,  of  the  nations 
being  various,  Edom,  Ishmael,  etc.,  and  their  religions  different, 
there  was  still  one  point  common  to  them  all — they  had  all  set 
their  heart  to  do  evil  to  Israel ;  accordingly,  the  kings  are  repre- 
sented as  saying,  '  In  our  laws  and  religions,  all  we  like  sheep 
have  gone  astray,'  or,  in  the  words  of  the  prophet  (Jer.  xvi.  19), 
'  Our  fathers  have  inherited  nothing  but  vanity.'  And  the  Lord 
hath  laid  upon  him,  etc.,  i.  e.  Israel  received  the  wickedness  of 
them  all  upon  himself :  the  '  iniquity  of  us  all '  is  like  '  our 
iniquities '  just  above,  for  yf^  is  not  used  of  the  penalty  of  sin 
(as  the  commentators  allege),  but  rather  of  the  foul  and  wicked 
deeds  wrought  against  Israel.  By  the  words  the  Lord  laid  upon 
him,  these  are  here  attributed  to  the  Deity,  in  order  to  indicate 
that  God  has  '  ordained '  Israel  '  for  judgment,  and  established 
him  for  correction'  (Hab.  i.  12)  in  captivity,  and  so  to  endure 
punishments  at  the  hand  of  the  Gentiles ;  or,  perhaps,  they 
may  be  designed  as  the  expression  of  their  own  conviction  that 
the  misfortunes  which  fell  upon  Israel,  whether  natural  or 
accidental,  were  all  sent  by  Providence  for  the  evil  of  their 
deeds  and  their  false  religion,  and  not  for  the  wickedness  of 
the  Gentiles  themselves,  in  accordance  with  what  they  say 
above,  '  But  we  esteemed  him  stricken  of  God  and  afflicted.'  It 
is  plain  from  this  passage,  that  the  sicknesses  which  ought  to 
have  fallen  upon  the  Gentiles,  were  carried  by  Israel  instead  : 
it  is  not,  however,  said  that  Israel  received  the  penalty  which 
ought  to  have  fallen  on  the  Gentiles  for  their  sins  (although  this 


-liii.  8.]  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  179 

is  what  the  Christians  believe  to  be  the  opinion  held  by  the 
Jews),  for  it  does  not  appear  to  have  been  the  prophet's  in- 
tention to  speak  about  this  :  rather,  as  I  have  explained,  the 
sicknesses  and  pains  are  not  referred  by  him  to  their  author, 
but  are  treated  as  belonging  to  the  recipient  in  whom  they 
reside.  And  by  this  observation,  the  fourth  question,  proposed 
ubove,  is  closed.  ''The  first  class  of  Israel's  misfortunes,  those 
viz.  affecting  the  body,  being  now  concluded,  the  prophet 
proceeds  to  the  second  class,  affecting  their  pi'operty,  and  com- 
prising oppressive  tribute  and  taxation,  with  other  forms  of 
spoliation  and  plunder,  from  which  Israel  suffered  continually. 
Of  this  he  says.  He  teas  oi^pressed  and  lie  ivas  afflicted,  where 
'  oppression '  (CJ3)  signifies  the  extortion  of  money,  us  2  Kings 
xxiii.  35,  Deut.  xv.  2  ;  if  so,  however,  the  two  forms  of  per- 
secution are  conjoined,  that,  viz.  affecting  his  body,  and  that 
affecting  his  substance,  so  that  the  meaning  is,  '  He  was  op- 
pressed or  plundered  of  his  riches,  while  or  though,  at  the  same 
time,  afflicted  in  his  body.'  Still,  in  spite  of  this,  he  opened 
not  his  mouth,  but  was  as  a  sheep  which  men  lead  off  to 
slaughter,  but  which  emits  no  cry :  in  the  same  way,  the 
Israelites  bore  in  silence  the  violence  done  to  their  bodies. 
Of  those  touching  their  substance  he  continues.  And  as  a  lamb, 
fx'om  whom  her  shearers  remove  the  wool,  so  was  Israel  dumb, 
and  opened  not  his  mouth  before  those  who  spoiled  him.  And 
because  two  comparisons  are  here  instituted,  one  relating  to  the 
deprivation  of  life,  and  the  other  to  the  deprivation  of  sub- 
stance, the  words  '  he  opened  not  his  mouth '  are  repeated  twice. 
It  is  possible,  however,  to  interpret  the  opening  part  of  this 
verse,  '  He  was  oppressed  and  he  was  afflicted,'  entirely  of  the 
plunder  of  his  substance,  understanding  it  to  mean  that  the 
Israelites  were  afflicted  by  imprisonment  and  chains  until  they 
gave  up  what  was  required  of  them.  ^  In  this  verse  the  third 
kind  of  misfortunes  are  described,  how,  viz.  while  in  exile, 
Israel  possessed  neither  kingly  power,  nor  the  staff  of  judgment, 
nor  authority  to  ci'eate  or  maintain  courts  of  justice,  such  as 

N  2 


180  DON    YIZHAQ    ABAKBANKL.  [liii.  9. 

tlicy  possessed  before  in  their  own  land  ;  and  therefore  tlie 
prophet  says  truly,  From  coercion,  i.e.  from  sovereignty  (i  Sam. 
ix.  17),  and  from  judgment,  i.  e,  from  the  Sanhedrin  and  the 
divine  right  conferred  by  the  law,  Israel  loas  taken  away.  And 
because  it  might  occur  to  an  ol>jector  to  ask  how  he  can  say 
taken  away,  as  though  previously  Israel  had  enjoyed  both, 
whereas,  in  fact,  they  had  been  for  long  years  in  exile,  without 
the  prerogatives  of  either  sovereign  or  judge,  subjected  to  the 
laws  of  the  Gentiles,  he  adds,  And  his  generation  who  shall 
declare  ?  i.  e.  Who  indeed  can  tell  of  the  dignity  and  privileges 
which  belonged  to  Israel's  generation  in  the  former  days,  now 
that  he  is  cut  off  from  the  land  of  life,  i.  e.  the  land  of  Israel, 
where  once  he  enjoyed  the  rights  of  '  sovereignty  and  judgment  1 ' 
is  he  not  of  a  truth  shorn  of  them  all  through  the  wickedness 
of  the  nations  who  came  up  against  him,  made  havoc  of  him, 
and  seized  his  land  1  He  continues,  On  account  of  the  trans- 
gressions of  our  nations,  i.  e.  Babylon  and  Edom,  who  cut  Israel 
off  from  the  land  of  life,  the  sti'oke  of  devastation  and  depri- 
vation of  rights  passed  over  thfm,  i.  e.  Israel  :  for  although  the 
prophet  in  this  Parashah  generally  addresses  Israel  in  the 
singular,  yet  here  he  makes  it  his  aim  to  characterize  them  by 
the  plural  term  107,  in  order  to  render  it  clear  that  the  indi- 
vidual mentioned  throughout  is  not  some  isolated  man,  but  the 
whole  nation  collectively.  Or,  perhaps,  ID?  is  used  for  the 
purpose  of  alluding  to  the  double  destruction  which  befel  Jeru- 
salem and  the  Temple,  the  first  [under  Nebuchadnezzar]  and 
the  second  [under  Titus].  Eashi  explains  his  generation  etc. 
as  follows  :  '  The  years  during  which  Israel  remained  in  captivity, 
and  the  wearying  vexations  which  came  over  him,  when  cut 
off  from  the  land  of  life,  who  can  tell  1  for  they  are  more  in 
number  than  the  locust,  and  cannot  be  counted.'  And  here 
ends  the  enumeration  of  the  third  class  of  misfortunes.  ^  The 
prophet  now  passes  on  to  the  fourth  class,  describing  how,  even 
in  their  death,  they  had  no  security  or  freedom  from  the  wicked- 
ness of  tlie  Gentiles  :    the  Psalmist  indeed  says,  '  Free  among 


liii.  9.]  DON    YIZIIAQ    ABARBANEL.  181 

the  dead '  {Ps.  Ixxxviii.  6),  but  the  Israelites  were  not  free  among 
tite  dead,  for  even  after  their  burial  the  wicked  heathen  '  in  the 
pupil  of  the  night  and  darkness '  used  to  drag  them  forth  from 
their  tombs,  in  order  to  plunder  their  grave-clothes,  and  to 
insult  and  abuse  their  bodies,  especially  if  the  dead  person  was 
suflBciently  wealthy  for  them  to  imagine  that  his  'glory'  and 
riches  might  '  descend  after  him.'  And  so  they  would  cast  him 
out  of  his  sepulchre,  like  a  '  carcase  trodden  under  feet,'  and 
expose  him  naked  before  the  sun,  as  has  happened  in  our  lands 
oftentimes.  It  seems  to  me,  therefore,  to  be  beyond  doubt  that 
by  the  words  made  his  grave  with  the  wicked,  it  is  meant  that 
Israel  was  persecuted  by  the  wicked  even  to  the  tomb ;  and  by 
the  rich  in  his  death  that,  if  a  Jew  Avas  wealthy  at  the  time  of 
his  death,  his  tomb  was  so  much  the  more  likely  to  be  given 
over  to  their  clutches.  A.nd  since  at  this  point  the  nations  who 
have  been  speaking,  close  their  description  of  Israel's  mis- 
fortunes during  exile,  they  add,  Because  he  did  no  violence  etc., 
as  though  to  say.  All  that  we  have  mentioned  came  upon  him, 
because  he  would  not  perpetrate  any  deed  of  violence,  or  utter 
falsehood,  for  which  he  might  deserve  it.  The  words  are  spoken 
from  the  point  of  view  of  the  Gentiles,  not  that  of  the  prophet : 
because  it  is  quite  clear  that  during  the  captivity  there  were 
transgressors  in  Israel,  men  of  violence,  deceitfulness,  and  fraud, — 
so  much  so,  indeed,  that  it  is  promised  that  in  the  future  '  the 
remnant  of  Israel  shall  not  do  iniquity,  nor  speak  lies,  neither 
shall  there  be  found  in  their  mouth  a  tongue  of  deceit '  (Zeph. 
iii.  13):  this  immunity  from  crime  could  not,  therefore,  have 
existed  previously,  but  is  assumed  by  the  Gentiles,  because  their 
design  is  to  shew  how  Israel  had  endured  the  calamities  of  exile 
unjustly.  Rashi,  however,  intei'})rets  thus  : — Israel  gave  him- 
self up  to  be  buried  in  whatever  place  might  be  detemiined  by 
the  wicked  heathen,  who  used  to  murder  them  in  every  way 
possible,  and  then  bury  them  like  asses ;  and  if  there  was  any 
one  wealthy  among  them,  his  wealth  alone,  though  he  had  done 
no  wrong,  might  be  the  occasion  of  his  death.     Others,  seeing 


182  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [Hii.  lo. 

that  Israel  was  in  captivity  under  Edom  [Rome],  suppose  that 
all  these  misfortunes  were  occasioned  by  the  murder  of  the  man 
who  was  put  to  death  towards  the  end  of  the  second  Temple ; 
the  Jews  acted  then  in  accordance  with  justice,  and  because 
tJiey  did  ow  violence  by  perverting  judgment  and  rescuing  him 
after  he  bad  been  justly  condemned,  many  troubles  and  mis- 
fortunes came  upon  them.  Calamities  befel  them  also  amongst 
the  Ishmaelites  [Mohammedans]  because  they  would  never 
acknowledge  the  fundamental  truths  of  tlieir  law,  or  accept 
the  doctrines  of  their  religion.  The  meaning  of  the  whole 
will  then  be,  Because  he  did  no  violence  when  Jesus  of  Nazareth 
was  put  to  death,  he  was  persecuted  by  Edom;  and  because 
there  was  no  deceit  in  his  mouth,  by  uniting  with  the  Ishmael- 
ites in  their  religion,  he  experienced  at  their  hands  subjugation 
and  ill-usage.  ^"'^  These  verses  form  the  third  subdivision  of 
the  Parashah,  and  contain  the  words  of  the  prophet  himself. 
For  the  interpretation  of  the  first  verse,  the  methods  adopted 
by  the  commentators  not  commending  itself  to  me,  three 
different  courses  have  suggested  themselves :  the  first  two  of 
these,  for  reasons  which  will  be  explained,  I  do  not  adhere  to ; 
the  third  I  have  'taken  hold  of,  and  will  not  let  it  go.'  The 
first  course  is  to  assume  an  inversion,  and  to  connect  the  con- 
ditional particle  'if  with  what  precedes:  the  sense  will  then 
be,  '7/*  the  Lord  is  pleased  to  bruise  him,  i.  e.  to  punish  him 
with  exile,  his  soul  will  make  a  trespass-offering.'  In  other 
words :  Know  and  believe  that  all  this  proceeds  only  from 
Israel's  sin  and  the  guilt  of  his  own  soul :  there  are  no  chastise- 
ments without  iniquity;  if,  therefore,  the  Lord  is  pleased  to 
bruise  Israel,  and  to  sicken  him  by  plagues  of  every  description, 
do  not,  like  the  Gentile  kings,  think  that  all  this  came  upon 
him  because  he  had  done  no  violence,  and  there  was  no  deceit 
in  his  mouth ;  on  the  contrary,  his  soul  will  make  a  trespass- 
offering,  and  we  must  believe  that  he  endured  the  sufferings  of 
exile  for  his  sins.  And  then  it  is  added,  after  his  iniquities 
have  been  blotted  out  by  these  sufferings,  he  shall  see  seed,  at 


liii.  10.]  DON    YIZIIAQ   ABAIIBANEL.  183 

the  time,  viz.  of  deliverance,  when  their  seed  will  be  multiplied 
exceedingly,  as  Ezckiel  (xxxvi.  37)  and  Zechariah  (x.  8,  10)  both 
declare,  and  lengthen  days,  as  Isaiah  says  (Ixv.  22),  'As  the 
daj'^s  of  a  tree  shall  be  the  days  of  my  people,'  and  (ver.  22), 
'  The  youth  shall  die  a  hundred  years  old ; '  and  tlie  2)leasure  of 
the  Lord  shall  prosper  in  his  hand,  because  by  his  means  the 
kingdom  and  power  of  God  will  be  manifested  in  the  world. 
But  I  have  abandoned  this  interpretation,  because  it  is  not  in 
accordance  with  the  accents,  which  connect  '  if  with  the  word 
following  it  by  Maqqef.  The  second  course  is  to  derive  vPin 
not  from  7Vn  to  be  sick,  but  from  the  same  root  as  ''ODvnn 
(xxxviii.  16)  to  be  plump  and  healthy,  as  though  the  prophet 
said,  And  the  Lord,  who  was  pleased  to  bruise  Israel  in  exile, 
restored  them  again  to  life  and  health  by  delivering  them :  and 
therefore  (so  the  next  words  imply),  although  much  guilt  and 
sin  attaches  to  him,  he  will  still  be  worthy  of  great  and  long 
pi'osjierity.  But  this  interpretation  likewise  is  unsatisfactory, 
because  the  root  of  '•JlDvnn  is  D-TI,  whereas  that  of  ''pnn  is  n?n : 
vnn  therefore  cannot  have  the  meaning  of  oiri,  since  if  this 
were  the  case,  the  Mem  being  radical,  it  must  have  been  written 
Dvnn.  The  third  course  seems  to  me  to  be  the  correct  one. 
The  prophet,  as  though  replying  to  the  kings,  says  : — Israel's 
exile,  although  we  concede  that  it  is  caused  by  his  sins,  is  not 
perpetual ;  the  Lord  will  not  make  a  full  end  of  his  people  and 
his  inheritance,  so  as  to  I'emove  them  from  his  face  for  ever  : 
it  is  rather  for  the  purpose  of  chastising  him  '  as  a  man  chas- 
tiseth  his  son ; '  which  is  what  is  meant  by  the  words,  '  The  Lord 
IS  pleased  to  bruise  him.'  And  these  chastisements  do  not  take 
the  form  of  death,  as  they  often  do  with  a  man  who  in  liis 
vexation  slays  his  neighbour,  but  take  the  form  of  sickness 
with  an  abundance  of  remedies  and  cures  :  for,  as  the  Psalmist 
says,  '  It  is  ray  sickness,  the  years  of  the  right  hand  of  the  Most 
High'  (Ps.  Ixxvii.  8-1  r),  by  which  he  means  that  it  was  not 
complete  and  simple  annihilation  which  had  come  upon  him, 
but  that    he  had    merely   'become   sick'   (Dan.  viii.  27),   even 


184  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [liii.  ii. 

though  his  sickness  might  seem  inveterate  and  more  protracted 
than  the  'years  of  the  right  hand  of  the  Most  High,'  i.e.  years 
as  numerous  as  his  power  could  bring  forth ;  so  here,  by  making 
him  sick,  the  prophet  implies  that  it  was  sickness  and  not 
annihilation  which  God  had  decreed  against  him.  And  there- 
fore, '  although  his  soul  makes  a  trespass-offering,'  i.  e.  although 
Israel  is  sinful  and  guilty,  he  will,  nevei-theless,  be  healed  of  his 
sickness,  and  see  the  seed  of  his  nation  multiplied,  and  lengthen 
days  throughout  a  life  of  continued  prosperity ;  and,  in  addition 
to  this,  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord,  which  is,  that  all  the  cluldren 
of  the  world  shall  come,  as  Zephaniah  says  (iii.  9),  to  recognise 
his  Godhead,  shall  prosper  in  Israel's  hand,  because  'out  of  Zion 
shall  go  forth  a  law,  and  the  word  of  the  Lord  out  of  Jerusalem' 
(Is.  ii.  3).  The  great  11.  Abraham  'Ibn  'Ezra  explains  the  verse 
as  follows : — The  Lord  was  pleased  to  bruise  and  sicken  him 
through  exile ;  but  if  Israel  will  make  his  soul  a  trespass-offer- 
ing and  confess  his  sin,  saying,  like  Joseph's  brethren  (Gen.  xlii. 
21),  '  Truly  we  are  guilty,  and  therefore  all  this  distress  hath 
come  upon  us,'  then,  after  this  repentance,  God  will  redeem 
him,  and  he  shall  see  seed,  and  lengthen  days.  But  the  expla- 
nation which  I  have  given  is  more  correct.  It  is  now  plain  (i)  that 
the  words,  '  But  we  esteemed  him  smitten  of  God  and  afflicted,' 
and,  '  For  the  transgression  of  my  people  there  was  a  stroke 
upon  them,'  express  the  ideas  of  the  Gentile  kings  who  do  not 
know  the  ways  of  the  Lord;  and  (2)  that  the  words,  'If  his 
soul'  etc.,  are  unquestionably  spoken  in  the  prophet's  own 
person,  meaning,  that  if  he  attributes  guilt  to  his  soul,  truly 
even  after  having  had  his  iniquities  blotted  out,  he  will  see 
seed  and  have  long  life.  And  if  all  this  be  true,  then  our  JlJlJi 
question  will  have  been  solved.  "Here  the  prophet  states 
by  what  merits  Israel's  guilt  will  be  atoned,  so  as  for  him  to 
see  seed  and  lengthen  days,  and  how  the  Lord^s  pleasure,  the 
insti-uction  of  the  Gentiles  and  their  being  brought  under  the 
wings  of  the  Shekhinah,  will  prosper  in  his  hand.  The  three 
verbs  pHV^  J?3B'\  HNt^  do  not,  in   my  opinion,  refer  to  the 


liii.  II.]  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  185 

future,  but  relate  what  took  place  during  the  captivity — how 
Israel  ivas  seeing,  was  satisfied,  was  justifying.  The  prophet, 
in  short,  describes  three  great  merits  which  then  belonged  to 
Israel.  The  first  of  these,  adduced  in  view  of  what  had  just 
been  said  respecting  Israel's  guilt,  is,  that  for  the  mischief  of  his 
soul  he  saw,  i.  e.  he  perceived  and  saw  the  guilt  and  iniquities 
of  his  soul,  in  order  to  turn  from  them:  b'OV  ('mischief')  is 
already  used  of  sin  or  guilt,  Ps.  vii.  15,  Hab.  i.  13.  The  second 
is,  that  lie  was  satisfied  in  his  knowledge,  implying  that  although 
while  in  exile,  when  '  terrors '  came  about  him  '  like  water ' 
(Job  xxvii.  20),  he  was  hungry  and  thirsty  and  in  want  of 
everything,  still  in  his  own  eyes  he  was  contented  and  rich,  and 
grew  great  in  himself  by  his  knowledge  of  the  law  of  God, 
which  told  him  how  '  the  man  that  is  satisfied  contiuueth, 
without  being  visited  of  evil '  (Prov.  xix.  2  3),  and  does  not  care 
for  any  trouble  which  he  may  incur  on  account  of  the  '  statutes 
of  the  Lord '  which  '  rejoiced  his  heart.'  The  authorities  who 
inserted  the  accents  have,  however,  placed  Zaqef  on  y3ty%  in 
order  to  separate  it  from  injJin,  and  the  1  is  pointed  with 
Qamez ;  if  this  punctuation  be  adhered  to,  the  meaning  will  be 
that  he  was  satisfied  and  rejoiced  in  himself,  the  cause  and 
ground  of  his  satisfaction  being  added  afterwards,  viz.  through 
his  knoivledge.  Rashi's  explanation  is,  that  he  saw  and  was 
satisfied  by  his  labour,  without  conmiittiiig  any  robbery.  Israel's 
third  merit  is,  that,  although  in  the  midst  of  enemies  and  in 
exile,  he  yet  '  kept  no  bridle  ou  his  mouth '  in  the  matter  of  his 
own  religion  and  law,  and  made  no  acknowledgment  of  their 
creeds  for  the  purpose  of  flattering  them  :  but  Israel,  the  faithful 
servant,  was  ever  justifying  publicly  amidst  the  multitude  the 
knowledge  that  was  truthful  and  just,  in  spite  of  the  many 
misfortunes  he  thereby  endured  from  the  wickedness  of  the 
Gentiles.  And  so  it  is  said,  how  the  just  one,  my  servant 
Israel,  justified  to  many  of  the  Gentiles  his  knowledge  (the 
knowledge  mentioned  immediately  above),  although,  in  con- 
sequence of  doing   so,    he   hare   their   iniquities.      It   is   also 


186  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [lili.  12. 

possible  to  explain  the  verse  of  the  future — the  three  verbs 
here  correspondiug  to,  and  expanding  the  three  promises  of 
ver.  10.  Thus,  as  there  it  was  promised,  'He  shall  see  seed,* 
so  here  it  is  added,  More  titan  (lie  travail  of  his  soul  which  he 
experienced  in  exile  (the  D  being  the  Mem  of  superiority  or 
comparison,  as  Eccl.  vii.  i,  Prov.  viii.  11),  ?ie  shall  see  seed  at 
the  time  of  deliverance  :  as  there  it  was  said, '  He  shall  lengthen 
days,'  so  here  it  is  added,  He  slwll  be  satisfied, — shall  always  die 
an  old  man  and  full  of  years  (lit.  satisfied  of  days) ;  and  as  there 
it  was  predicted  that  '  the  Lord's  pleasure,'  i.  e.  the  bringing  in 
of  the  Gentiles  to  call  upon  his  name,  should  'prosper  in  his 
hand,'  so  here  it  is  added  that  by  his  knowledge  and  wisdom, 
Israel  ony  servant,  the  righteous  one,  shall  make  many  righteous 
by  turning  them  from  their  own  lying  beliefs,  and  leading  them 
to  'everlasting  righteousness'  (Dan.  ix.  24),  not  desisting  on 
account  of  the  ill-treatment  received  at  their  hands  during  exile 
(for  such  is  the  meaning  of  the  last  words,  viz.  although  now, 
during  the  exile,  Jie  bears  their  iniquities).  The  sense  of  this 
difficult  passage  will  by  this  time  have  been  made  clear,  and  so 
the  sixth  question  is  solved.  ^^  The  first  part  of  this  verse  is 
assigned  by  the  commentators  to  God,  or  to  the  prophet  speak- 
ing in  his  name :  but  it  is  better  to  regard  it  as  the  pi-oi)het's 
prayer  entreating  God  to  divide  him  {y?r\  as  xxxiv.  17)  a  por- 
tion with  the  many,  i.  e.  that  Israel  may  rule  over  many  nations 
among  the  Gentiles,  and  that  God  may  give  them  to  him  as  an 
inheritance.  So,  too,  by  the  mighty,  are  meant  the  mighty 
nations  who  will  come  up  against  Israel  in  the  days  of  Gog  and 
Magog,  and  whose  spoil  the  Holy  One  will  give  into  the  hands 
of  Israel.  Four  causes  are  then  assigned  for  Israel's  being 
worthy  of  these  favours.  The  first  is,  that  while  in  exile  he 
'poured  out  (Gen.  xxiv.  20)  his  soul  to  die  for  the  sanctity  of  the 
Holy  Name  :  the  second  is,  that  the  Gentiles,  at  the  same  time, 
then  classed  him  with  the  generality  of  transgressors  and  rene- 
gades, with  'plenty  of  indignation  and  contempt'  (Esth.  i.  18), 
and  therefore  his  reward  will  be  that  he  will  rise  to  greatness: 


liii.  12.]  DON   YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  187 

the  tliird  is,  that  he  carried  tlie  sin  of  many,  \.  e.  not  tliat  he 
atoned  for  their  sins,  but  that  in  receiving  injury  from  the 
Gentiles,  he  took  upon  himself  their  wickedness  and  evil  deeds 
which  are  the  '  sins  '  and  '  iniquities '  siioken  of :  and  the  fourth 
is,  that  when  he  was  in  captivity,  he  made  sn])])lication  to  tlie 
transgressors,  and  entreated  them  like  servants  whose  'eyes  are 
towards  the  hand  of  their  master ; '  and  therefore  it  is  in  the 
order  of  justice  that  in  the  same  place  where  formerly  he  fell 
down  at  their  feet  in  supplication,  he  should  now  rule  over 
them,  and  divide  their  si^oil.  yjS''  has  the  same  force  as  in 
Jer.  vii.  i6,  viz.  to  entreat.  Perhaps,  however,  the  meaning  may 
be,  that  in  captivity  Israel  interceded  with  God  for  the  peace 
and  prosperity  of  the  Gentiles,  as  it  is  said  in  the  Prayer  of  the 
Mvssaf  m  for  the  New  Year, '  And  let  all  the  children  of  the  flesh 
call  upon  thy  name,  to  turn  to  thee  all  the  wicked  of  the  earth : 
let  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  world  acknowledge  and  know 
that  to  thee  every  knee  shall  bow,'  etc. ;  and  similarly  by  Jere- 
miah (xxvii.  9),  'And  ye  shall  pray  for  the  peace  of  the  city.' 
Others  explain  y^JD''  from  i  Kings  ii.  31,  supposing  the  meaning 
to  be,  that  he  slew  and  made  havoc  of  the  transgressors  among 
the  Gentiles ;  but  this  view  is  not  correct.  Such  is  the  expla- 
nation of  this  Parashah,  according  to  the  first  method,  which 
applies  it  to  Israel ;  and  the  questions  arising  in  connexion  with 
this  view  have  been  now  answered. 

The  second  method  is  to  refer  the  entire  prophecy  to  Josiali 
king  of  Judah,  who  '  did  that  Avhich  was  right  in  the  eyes  of 
the  Lord,'  and  like  whom  '  there  had  been  no  king  before  him ' 
(2  Kings  xxii.  i,  xxiii.  25),  and  who,  when  Phar'oh  Necho,  king 
of  Egypt,  came  up  to  fight  against  the  king  of  Assyria,  would 
not  allow  him  to  pass  through  his  land,  but  went  out  against 
him  to  battle,  and  was  slain  by  the  archers  (2  Chron.  xxxv.  23), 
and  to  whom  Jeremiah  (Lam.  iv.  20)  alludes  as  having  perished 

•»  The  Mussaf  (lit.  '  Addition ')  consists  of  the  devotions  which  follow 
morning  prayer  {Shahrith)  on  the  Sabbath  and  certain  festivals. 


188  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [Hi.  13. 

in  the  iniquity  of  his  generation.  And  because,  in  view  of  the 
integrity  of  liis  life,  his  death  was  strange  and  surprising,  the 
prophet  utters  over  him  this  Parashah,  for  you  will  find  below, 
in  the  Parashah  Dmy  VS1X  (Ivi.  lo-lvii.  2),  how  he  alludes  again 
to  Josiah,  saying,  '  The  righteous  hath  perished,  and  no  niiin 
layeth  it  to  heart,'  etc.  (Ivii.  i);  and  in  the  book  of  Lamenta- 
tions, he  laments  over  him  in  the  words  (iv.  20),  '  The  breath  of 
our  nostrils,  the  Lord's  anointed,  is  caught  in  their  pits,'  etc. 
Nor  is  there  anything  remarkable  in  tliis  prophecy  coming  in 
the  midst  of  a  series  of  promises  of  the  future  redemption;  for 
the  prophecies  in  this  book  are  not  all  of  them  connected  or 
related  to  one  auothei',  but  each  sepai-atc  prophecy  and  each 
separate  promise  uttered  by  the  prophet  stands  by  itself,  as  may 
be  seen  from  their  contents.  Even  were  it  otherwise,  however, 
it  might  be  reasonably  supposed  that  after  he  had  said  above 
(lii.  i),  '  There  shall  no  more  pass  through  thee  the  uncircum- 
cised  or  the  unclean,'  and  warned  the  nations  (ver.  11)  to  *go 
out  from  thence,  and  touch  not  that  which  was  unclean,'  the 
prophet  was  here  shewn  the  great  calamity  which  would  accom- 
pany Phar'oh  Necho's  passage  through  the  land  of  Israel  at  the 
time  when  Josiah  was  slain,  in  order  to  have  an  oi:)portunity 
of  declaring  that  nothing  like  it  should  occur  again  at  the  time 
of  the  future  redemption,  because  then  none  uncircumcised  or 
unclean  should  pass  through  any  more.  '^  The  prophet  begins 
by  describing  in  the  first  verse,  in  the  name  of  God,  the  in- 
tegrity of  the  king ;  in  the  next  verse  follows  the  account  of 
his  death ;  and  in  the  third  the  manner  in  which  he  was  avenged. 
He  relates,  firstly,  how  Josiah  was  a  servant  of  the  Lord  in  all 
his  deeds,  as  it  is  said  in  the  Chronicles  (xxxiv.  33),  'And 
Josiah  took  aAvay  all  the  abominations  .  . .  ,  and  made  all  that 
were  present  in  Israel  to  serve  the  Lord  their  God,  all  his  days  ; ' 
and  desci'ibes  how  he  had  understanding/,  i.  e.  was  wise  and 
learned  in  the  ways  of  God  and  in  the  book  of  the  Law,  as  is 
told  in  the  narrative.  And  since  David,  too,  is  called  '  the 
servant  of  the  Lord '  (2  Sam.  vii.  5  al.),  and  is  stated  to  have  '  had 


lil  14.]  DOX    YIZITAQ    ABAEBANEL.  189 

uuilerstanding  in  all  his  ways'  (i  Sam.  xviii.  14),  and  Josiah 
also  is  said  to  have  *  walked  in  the  ways  of  David  his  father ' 
(2  Chron.  xxxiv.  2),  the  prophet,  wishing  to  suggest  the  com- 
parison, speaks  of  him  in  the  same  terms,  '  Behold  my  servant 
shall  have  tmderstanding.'  Then  in  consideration  of  his  regal 
power,  as  king  of  Judah,  he  continues,  he  shall  be  high;  and 
inasmuch  as  besides  reigning  over  Judah,  he  reigned  likewise 
over  those  amongst  the  ten  tribes  whom  Jeremiah  converted  to 
tlie  truth  (as  it  is  said,  2  Chron.  xxxiv.  5  f.,  '  In  the  cities  of 
Manasseh  and  Ephraim  and  Simeon,  even  unto  Naphtali,'  which 
shews  that  his  authority  extended  over  these  as  well,  and  as 
our  Rabbis  say  in  the  last  section  of  the  treatise  'Erubin,  '  Jere- 
miah converted  them,  and  Josiah  was  king  over  them '),  adds 
further,  shall  be  exalted.  Lastly,  he  concludes,  and  shall  be 
lofty  exceedingly,  intimating  thereby  how  all  his  thoughts  and 
deeds  were  directed  upwards,  to  the  service  of  God,  who  is 
'loftier  than  the  loftiest'  (Eccles.  v.  7),  and  not  to  the  sun  or 
the  moon,  as  were  those  of  his  fathers  Manasseh  and  Amon. 
Or  we  may  suppose  that  the  words  shall  be  high  are  an  allusion 
to  the  dignity  of  the  kingdom,  exalted  to  the  dignified  attributes 
for  which  he  was  eminent,  and  lofty  exceedingly  to  the  excel- 
lency of  knowledge  and  adherence  to  God,  which  in  him  were 
super-eminently  conspicuous.  ^*  After  the  account  of  his  high 
perfection  follows  that  of  his  death,  which  was  not  caused  by 
his  own  iniquity,  but  by  the  wickedness  of  his  generation ;  and, 
therefore,  addressing  Israel  (to  whom  the  preceding  discourse, 
ver.  1 2,  is  directed),  the  prophet  says.  As  many  were  laid 
desolate,  etc.,  i.  e.  As  thou,  Israel,  wast  the  cause  of  death  and 
desolation  to  many  honoured  prophets  and  pious  men  of  old, 
who  died  through  the  wickedness  of  their  own  generation,  such 
as  Moses  and  Aaron,  and  to  many  besides  no  less  honoured  than 
they  were,  so  at  thee,  and  on  thy  account,  was  his  countenance, 
the  countenance,  viz.  of  my  sers'ant  Josiah  (who  is  here  spoken 
of),  marred  hy  man — for  Josiah's  face  was  disfigured  by  the 
hand  of  man,  i.  e.  by  Phar'oh  Necho — aiul  his  form  by  the  sons 


190  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [Hi.  15- 

0/  men,  i.  e.  by  his  mighty  meu  of  valour,  and  the  archers  who 
shot  liim.  The  verse  thus  means,  that  his  death  did  not  take 
place  (as  such  perfect  piety  might  have  seemed  to  require)  at 
the  hands  of  heaven,  but  that  he  was  marred  and  slain  by  the 
hands  of  men  for  the  sin  of  his  people.  ^^  After  relating  his 
death,  the  prophet  announces  the  promise  of  vengeance  to  be 
executed  by  God  u^jon  Phar'oh  and  ujjon  Egypt,  saying,  So  shall 
he  sprmkle  mant/  nations,  i.  e.  As  these  sons  of  men,  these 
Egyi^tians,  shed  the  blood  of  Josiah,  so  shall  God  for  his  sake 
sprinkle  the  blood  of  many  nations  :  for  although  '  blood '  is 
not  expressed  in  the  text,  it  is,  nevertheless,  virtually  contained 
in  the  word  'sprinkle,'  which  involves  the  idea  of  sprinkling 
blood.  Turning  next  to  Phar'oh  Necho,  the  '  man '  by  whose 
hands  the  countenance  of  Josiah  was  marred,  Isaiah  says,  At 
him  kings  will  shut  their  mouths,  etc.,  alluding  to  the  gi*eat 
destruction  wrought  by  Nebuchadnezzar  and  the  kings  who 
were  with  him  upon  Phar'oh  and  all  Egj^t  shortly  after  Josiah'3 
death  (2  Kings  xxiv.  i,  7,  10) ;  and  because  the  'kings'  of  the 
earth  did  not  believe  that  the  realm  of  Egypt  would  be  com- 
pletely and  utterly  destroyed,  he  therefore  adds.  For  that  which 
had  not  been  told  them  have  they  seen,  and  that  which  they  had 
not  heard  tlvey  have  lierceived. 

LIII.  ^  After  this,  the  prophet  begins  in  the  name  of  Israel 
to  complain  for  the  death  of  Josiah,  saying,  ^Yho  hath  believed 
this  evil  report  of  the  death  of  Josiah  %  for  there  is  no  one  who 
can  believe  that  Israel  would  have  '  turned  their  neck  in  the 
presence  of  their  enemies,'  or  that  '  their  king '  would  have  died 
'  before  them '  (cf.  Mic.  ii.  13).  It  is,  however,  possible  to  suppose 
that  the  7  in  13nyit3tJ'^  assigns  the  cause:  Who  is  there  that 
believes  in  the  reality  of  this  great  misfortune  1  No  one  believes 
in  it,  because  of  the  report  we  had  of  the  integrity,  the  justice, 
the  purity,  the  piety,  and  the  i-eligiou  promoted  by  his  hands ; 
for  by  reason  of  all  this,  God  should  rather  have  rescued  him 
'  from  the  snare  of  the  fowler,'  and  let  him  '  be  mighty  over  his 
enemies,'  and  'trample  the  young  lion  and  the  adder  under 


-liii.  2.]  DON  yiziiaQ  abarbanel.  191 

foot ; '  but,  in  fact,  the  reverse  happened,  and  the  arm,  i.  e.  the 
power,  of  the  Lord  became  a  help  to  Phar'oh  Necho,  so  that 
Josiah  was  slain.  Such,  namely,  is  the  meaning  of  And  the 
arm  of  tlie  Lord,  upon  whom  has  it  been  revealed  ?  in  other 
words,  Was  Phar  oh  Necho  so  much  juster  and  more  upright 
than  Josiah  that  the  arm  of  the  Lord  was  revealed  upon 
him? — the  contrast  between  the  perfection  and  goodness  of 
Josiah,  and  the  inferiority  and  wickedness  of  Necho  suggesting 
a  complaint  over  the  harshness  of  divine  Providence  which 
ordained  that  Josiah  should  be  righteous,  but  that  it  should 
go  ill  with  him,  Necho  be  wicked,  but  that  it  should  go  well 
with  him.  "  This  righteousness  is  now  described :  fi'om  his 
youth,  from  the  time  when  he  was  a  sucking  child,  he  directed 
himself  unswervingly  to  the  service  of  God,  '  to  walk  before  him 
in  the  integrity  of  his  heart,'  as  it  is  related  in  the  Chronicles 
(2  Chi'on.  xxxiv.  3)  how,  while  yet  a  lad,  he  began  'to  seek  the 
God  of  his  father  David.'  The  prophet  dilates  upon  his  per- 
fections, saying  how  he  was  like  a  root  out  of  the  dry  land, 
because  his  fathers  Amon  and  Manasseh  were  evil,  and  sinners 
before  God  exceedingly,  so  that  when  Josiah  became  king,  the 
land  was  all  drought  and  darkness,  filled  with  idols  and  strange 
worships ;  Josiah,  however,  came  forth  as  '  a  lily  amongst  the 
thorns '  and  as  a  '  root  out  of  the  dry  land,'  but  now,  when  the 
misfortune  comes  home  to  him,  and  the  terrors  of  death  fall 
upon  him,  he  has  no  form  and  no  beauty,  i.e.'  the  complexion 
of  his  face  is  changed,'  he  has  no  longer  any  form,  or  the  regal 
majesty  which  before  had  rested  on  him,  and  when  we  see  him, 
we  shall  not  behold  in  him  the  countenance  he  had  before  (as 
he  says  above.  His  couiatenance  and  form  were  marred),  yet, 
because  he  is  beloved  of  his  people,  he  adds,  and  we  shall  desire 
him,  because  after  his  death  men's  desire  for  him  became  great. 
And  observe  that,  while  in  the  book  of  Kings  the  account  of  his 
death  is  given  briefly,  in  the  Chronicles  (2  Chron.  xxxv.  24)  it 
is  related  that  it  did  not  take  place  immediately  after  he  was 
wounded,  but  that  he  was  carried  to  Jerusalem  stricken  and 


192  DON    YIZIIAQ   ABARBANEL.  [liii.  3- 

smitten,  and  marred  in  countenance  and  form,  and  there  died. 
^  After  describing  the  perfections  of  Josiah,  the  prophet  then 
depicts  the  insignificance  of  the  man  who  caused  his  ruin, 
Phar'oh  Necho.  In  view  of  his  bodily  defects  he  says,  He  teas 
despised  and  forlorn  of  men :  for  Necho  was  not  a  valiant  man 
'mighty  in  deeds'  (2  Sam.  xxiii.  20),  but  lame"  in  his  feet 
from  gout;  and  as  above  (Hi.  14)  he  speaks  of  him  as  a  'man,' 
so  here  he  terms  him  '  a  man  of  pains.'  For  this  cause  he  was 
the  more  despised  and  lightly  esteemed  in  our  eyes,  so  that  we 
hid  our  faces  from  him  and  did  not  listen  to  his  words  when  he 
sent  to  Josiah,  saying  (2  Chron.  xxxv.  21),  'What  have  I  to  do 
with  thee,  O  king  of  Judah  ? '  etc.,  but  refused  his  counsel,  be- 
cause he  was  despised  and  we  esteemed  him  not.  *  Yet  it  was 
not  Necho's  hand  which  fell  upon  Josiah  to  slay  him :  it  was 
our  sicknesses  which  he  carried — we,  and  not  Necho,  caused  the 
pain  and  sickness  which  he  bore.  In  the  expressions  '  our  sick- 
nesses,' '  our  pains/  the  pronoun  indicates  the  soui'ce  from  which 
the  sicknesses  and  pains  proceeded,  the  meaning  being  that 
their  sins,  and  not  the  power  of  Phar'oh,  occasioned  his  death. 
Or  the  pronoun  may  point  back  to  the  possessor,  as  though  to 
say,  The  pain  and  sickness  which  for  oiu"  transgressions  we 
ought  to  have  received,  Avere  borne  by  that  just  One  for  us,  and 
therefore  we  thought  that  he  was  smitten  and  put  to  death  by 
the  hand  of  God,  and  not  by  the  hand  of  Phar'oh  Necho. 
^  Thus,  because  he  was  wounded  for  our  transgressions,  bruised 
for  our  iniquities,  so  that  his  death  was  for  the  wickedness  of 
his  generation,  God,  who  judges  the  whole  earth,  and  not 
Phar'oh  Necho,  was  tlie  real  agent  in  it,  Phar'oh  was  but  the 
instrument,  like  the  sword  in  the  hand  of  the  executioner.  The 
proof  of  this  lies  in  the  words  our  peace  [which  rested]  upon 
him  ivas  removed,  i.  e.  by  his  death  the  peace  and  the  confidence 
which  Ave  reposed  in  liim  while  he  was  still  alive  came  to  an 


^  Probably  an  inference  from  the  name  Necho,  which  differs  but  slightly 
from  the  Hebrew  word  hero  rendered  'lame/  viz.  neche,  lit.  smitten. 


-liii.  ri.]  BON    YTZHAQ   ABAUBANEL.  193 

end.  Or  vb]}  may  mean  by  or  througli  his  death,  in  conse- 
quence of  which  their  peace  was  removed.  This  was  a  result 
which  actually  happened;  for  after  his  death,  Jehoahaz  was 
king  for  three  months,  and  Phar  oh  Necho  threw  him  into 
chains  at  Riblah,  and  imposed  a  great  fine  on  the  land,  and 
made  Jehoiaqim  king  in  his  stead  (2  Kings  xxiii.  33  f.),  where- 
upon Nebuchadnezzar  came  up  instantly  against  him,  and  bound 
him  in  fetters  to  take  him  to  Babylon  (2  Chron.  xsxvi.  6),  and 
he  died  on  the  road  amid  contumely  and  contempt.  After 
Jehoiaqim,  Jehoiakiu  was  king  for  three  months  till  Nebu- 
chadnezzar came  up  against  him  likewise,  and  can'ied  him  away 
captive  witli  all  the  vessels  of  the  Temple,  and  many  of  the 
princes  of  Jerusalem,  and  men  of  valour,  and  the  craftsmen  and 
smiths  (2  Kings  xxiv.  14),  and  made  Zedekiah  king,  in  whose 
days  the  city  was  laid  desolate,  and  the  sanctuary  burnt,  his 
sons  slain  before  his  eyes,  and  he  himself  blinded  and  carried 
off  to  Babylon  (2  Kings  xxv.  7).  These  facts  will  make  it  clear 
to  you  how,  from  the  day  of  Josiah's  death,  all  the  jjeace  of 
Judah  and  Jerusalem  was  removed;  and  how  the  nation,  unable 
to  resist  its  persecutors,  passed  from  one  misfortune  into  another, 
till  after  a  brief  intei'val  of  twenty-two  years  of  affliction  and 
hard  service,  Judah  was  carried  away  captive  :  and  so  it  is  said 
with  justice,  Our  jieace  was  removed  because  of  him,  because, 
namely,  the  peace  and  prosperity  of  the  people  departed  with 
his  death.  But  the  reverse  of  this  is  depicted  in  the  concluding 
words  of  the  verse,  which  I'elate  how  by  his  union  loith  us  while 
alive  we  vjere  healed;  he  was  our  protector,  and  by  him  there 
was  complete  healing  for  all  the  sicknesses  produced  by  our 
transgressions  and  distresses,  or,  as  Jeremiah  says  in  entire 
accordance  with  the  expressions  here  employed,  '  The  breath  of 
our  nostrils,  the  Lord's  anointed,  is  caught  in  their  pits — he 
of  whom  Ave  said,  In  his  shadow  shall  we  live  amongst  the 
nations'  (Lam.  iv.  20).  "Since,  however,  some  might  object  on 
the  ground  that  the  men  of  Judah  were  just  and  good  in  the 
days  of  Josiah,  and  wonder,  therefore,  how  it  could  be  said  that 

o 


194  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [liil*.  7- 

he  was  wounded  for  our  transgressions,  to  obviate  this  objection 
it  is  added,  All  tve  like  sheep  did  go  astray,  etc.,  i.  e.  although 
Josiah  removed  the  higli  phices  and  the  strange  idols  from  the 
land  so  that  the  people  no  longer  worshipped  them  generally 
and  in  public  as  in  the  days  before,  yet  in  particular  cases  and 
secretly  the  worship  of  them  was  still  practised,  as  our  Rabbis 
say  in  Ekhah  rabbdtJd^,  And  the  Lord  made  to  meet  (or,  im- 
pinge) upon  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all;  the  blow  which  they 
themselves  ought  for  their  iniquities  to  have  received,  was  made 
to  fall  upon  Josiah  by  the  hand  of  Phar'oh  Necho.  ''  The  next 
point  related  in  this  dirge  concerning  the  patience  of  Josiah  is 
how,  notwithstanding  that  he  saw  himself  oppressed,  i.  e.  ex- 
ternally beset  by  perils  during  the  war,  as  well  as  inwardly 
afflicted,  stricken,  and  smitten,  he  still  opened  not  his  mouth  to 
'  curse  his  day,'  neither  out  of  his  anguish  '  ascribed  foolishness 
to  God,'  but  in  his  patient  endurance  was  as  a  sheep — the  male 
of  the  flock — which,  while  led  to  the  slaughter,  in  addition  to 
its  own  fate,  sees  tlie  lamb,  its  mate,  dumb  be/ore  her  shearers, 
yet  being  naturally  a  patient  animal,  utters  no  cry,  either  for 
its  own  impending  slaughter,  or  for  the  fleecing  of  its  mate. 
In  the  same  way  Josiah  saw  his  people  and  his  camp  oppressed, 
pursued,  and  spoiled  by  their  enemies  like  the  shorn  lamb,  and 
beheld  himself  afflicted  and  stricken,  and  brought  to  die  in  Jeru- 
salem after  the  manner  of  the  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter ;  never- 
theless he  opened  not  his  moutli  to  complain  of  the  divuic 
dispensation.  Upon  this  explanation  the  words  opened  not  his 
mouth  will  refer  the  first  time  to  Josiah,  and  the  second  time 
to  the  male  sheep ;  and  the  3  in  7m3  will  not  be  the  Caph  of 
comparison,  but  the  Caph  which  indicates  time,  as  Ex.  ix.  29, 
I  Sam,  ix.  13.  ^The  prophet  still  continues  his  complaint, 
saying.  From  sovereignty  and  from  judgment  he  was  taken  away, 
because  at  his  death  he  ceased  to  be  king  and  to  exercise  judg- 
ment and  justice ;    and  when  God  had  deprived  him  of  these 

°  Not  to  be  found  in  our  editions. 


-liii.  lO.]  DON    YTZHAQ    ABARBANEL.  195 

prerogatives,  tvJio  could  then  pray  for  and  protect  his  genera- 
tion  ?  Or,  who  could  declare  and  teach  them  the  knowledge 
and  fear  of  the  Loi'd,  after  lie  had  been  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of 
the  living  ?  Therefore  also  it  is  added  with  truth,  that  for  this 
transgression  of  my  people  (which  was  the  cause  of  his  death) 
the  stroke  came  xipon  them,  viz.  upon  Israel  themselves,  because 
it  was  they  who  were  '  stricken '  by  his  death  even  more  than 
he  himself;  for  Josiah  experienced  no  further  harm  except  that 
God  ^assigned  him  his  grave  with,  and  tlirough  the  instrumen- 
tality of,  the  loicked  Egyptians.  His  death  is  here  spoken  of  as 
his  '  grave '  or  '  burial ; '  because,  inasmuch  as  every  dead  man 
is  buried,  death  itself  may  be  spoken  of  as  burial.  Or  the 
meaning  may  be,  that  God  made  the  wicked  Egyptians  to  be  the 
instrument  and  cause  of  his  burial  taking  place :  they  were  in 
the  position  of  men  who  cause  the  dead  to  be  buried.  Or  the 
words  may  be  explained  of  the  burial  of  the  body  of  Josiah  by 
the  side  of  Amon,  and  Manasseh,  and  his  fathers,  who  were 
wicked,  or  of  the  children  of  Judah  and  men  of  Jerusalem,  who 
were  worshippers  of  false  idols.  God  also  made  Phar'oh  Necho, 
the  r^c/i,  who  ruled  over  the  treasm'es  of  Egypt,  the  instrument  and 
mediate  cause  of  his  death,  as  is  signified  by  the  words,  the  rich 
in  his  death;  since,  owing  to  his  insignificance,  the  prophet  does 
not  term  him  'king'  or  'mighty  man'  (because  he  did  not 
achieve  his  conquest  by  the  swoi'd),  but  rich,  which  is  a  name 
applied  to  a  king,  as  by  Solomon,  Eccl.  x.  20.  The  last  words, 
because  he  did  no  violence,  etc.,  allude  to  Josiah's  being  '  perfect 
and  upright,  a  fearer  of  God  and  removed  from  evil.'  ^"  Josiah, 
however,  did  not  die  for  his  own  iniquity,  but  because  God  was 
j)leased  to  bruise  him,  as  it  was  he,  rather  than  the  archers,  who 
caused  him  his  sickness.  It  may  be  observed  that  the  same 
word  [vnn  to  he  siclc\  is  used  by  Josiah  in  speaking  of  himself 
at  the  time  when  he  was  wounded,  2  Chron.  xxxv.  23, '  Take  me 
away,  for  I  have  been  Tnade  sick  exceedingly.'  The  whole  force 
of  the  complaint  lies  in  the  fact  that  his  death  took  place,  not 
by  judgment  and  justice,  but  at  the  pleasure  and  will  of  the 

0  2 


196  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  [liii.  ii. 

Most  High  ;  and  in  order  to  intensify  it  yet  more,  there  is 
added,  If  his  soul,  etc.,  i.  e.  since  Josiah,  though  well-seeming 
with  hoth  God  and  man,  was  thus  bi'uised  by  the  Almighty, 
it  will  follow  that  if,  on  the  contrary,  he  had  been  a  man  of 
guilt  and  sin  (for  this  is  the  meaning  of,  If  his  soul  were  to 
'make  a  trespass-offering),  his  days  would  not  have  been  shoii- 
ened,  but  lie  would  see  seed  and  lengthen  days,  i.  e.  would  have 
seen  children's  children,  and  lived  to  old  age  and  hoary  hairs, 
and  the  Almighty  would  not  then  have  been  pleased  to  bruise 
him,  as  he  actually  did ;  rather,  through  his  being  sinful  and 
guilty,  it  would  be  the  Lord's  pleasure  that  Josiah  should 
prosper  hy  his  hand,  and  conquer  his  enemies  instead  of  being 
conquered  by  them,  and  slay  them  in  the  same  manner  in 
which,  in  fact,  he  was  slain  himself.  All  this  is  said  in  irony, 
which  is  the  habitual  resort  of  indignant  lamentation,  as  in 
Job's  complaint  at  the  prosperity  of  the  wicked,  xxi.  7-9. 
"  Having  now  finished  his  account  of  Israel's  complaint,  and 
their  murmurings  against  the  Lord  for  the  slaying  of  Josiah, 
Isaiah  proceeds  to  give  the  words  of  the  Almighty's  reply. 
For.  the  travail  of  his  soul — the  travail,  viz.,  which  resulted  in 
his  death — this  will  be  his  reward,  he  shall  see  and  he  satisfied, 
i.  e.  shall  see  the  '  light  of  life '  (Ps.  Ivi.  14),  and  he  satisfied  with 
a  'satiety  of  joys'  (Ps.  xvi.  11),  the  entix'e  plii-ase  being  an 
allusion  to  the  soul's  spiritual  reward  in  the  future  world  (as 
he  proceeds  at  once  to  describe).  Josiah,  he  says,  dcsei-ved 
rightly  this  reward  of  the  Most  High,  because,  hy  his  knowledge 
and  understanding,  my  servant  Josiah,  when  stricken  and  smit- 
ten at  the  hour  of  his  death,  justified  the  Ju^t  One  of  the  world 
to  many,  i.  e.  publicly,  and  in  the  presence  of  many  people, 
justified  the  judgment  against  himself,  so  as  to  preserve  in- 
violate the  sanctity  of  God.  For,  as  our  wise  men  say  in  the 
treatise  Ta'alnothP,  when  Josiah  was  brought,  stricken  down, 
to  Jerusalem,  Jeremiah  directed  his  ear  towards  him  so  as  to 

p  FoL  22b. 


liii,  12.]  DON    YIZHAQ   ABARBANEL.  197 

catch  what  he  might  say,  and  heard  him  repeat  the  words,  *  The 
Lord  is  just ;  for  I  have  rebelled  against  his  command.'  And 
therefore  it  is  said  with  truth  that  he  justified  tlie  Just  One, 
although  it  was  only  out  of  piety  and  humility  that  he  spoke  in 
such  terms ;  for  in  reality  the  case  was  different,  and  he  was 
hearing  tlie  iniquities  of  Israel,  who  were  the  occasion  of  his 
death.  ^^  Therefore  I  loill  divide  him  a  portion  with  (lie  great — 
he  will  have  his  portion  with  the  holy  patriarchs,  as  Eashi 
explains,  for  the  '  giants  who  were  of  old '  are,  from  their  exalted 
rank,  called  great  ones :  further,  loith  the  mighty  he  shall  divide 
spoil,  because  at  the  time  of  the  resurrection,  when  the  just  in 
Israel  will  be  brought  to  life,  and  return  to  their  own  country, 
Josiah,  in  company  with  the  mighty,  and  the  perfect  who  will 
then  rise  from  the  dead,  will  divide  the  spoil  of  this  corporeal 
world,  and  make  them  worthy  to  enjoy  the  land  of  Israel,  and 
the  good  things  which  it  will  produce.  This  will  be  a  recom- 
pense for  his  having  laid  bare  his  soul,  in  order  to  consecrate 
it  to  God,  when  about  to  die,  and  being  numbered  with 
tJie  transgressors,  viz.  in  suffering  himself  to  be  reckoned 
amongst  them  by  justifying  God's  judgment  against  him,  and 
confessing  that  he  had  '  rebelled  against  the  command,'  although 
in  reality  it  was  not  so :  because  he  did  not  die  for  his  own  sin, 
but  carried  the  sin  of  many,  and  died  for  the  iniquities  of  his 
people ;  and  because  of  the  transgressors  in  Israel,  Phar'oh  Necho 
caused  the  final  blow  to  fall  upon  him  (y^JS""  with  the  same  force 
as  in  ver.  6)  at  the  hands  of  the  archers.  And  now  the  whole 
Parafchah  has  been  explained;  the  questions  arising  out  of  it 
have  been  solved  in  accordance  with  the  second  scheme  as 
well  as  the  first,  and  we  have  freed  ourselves  from  the  mur- 
murings  of  the  learned  men  of  Edom  with  their  perverted 
interpretations. 


XXX.     R.  DAVID   DE   ROCCA  MARTINO. 


LII.  "This  Parashah  may  be  divided  into  three  parts  :  the 
first  extending  from  lii.  13  to  lii.  15,  the  second  from  liii.  i  to 
liii.  9,  the  third  from  liii.  10  to  the  end. 

The^s^  of  these  paints  is  spoken  entirely  by  the  prophet,  and 
falls  into  two  subdivisions.  Of  these,  the  first  contains  the  pro- 
mise of  the  future  prospei'ity  and  exaltation  of  the  atfiicted  con- 
gregation, addressed  as  in  xliv.  2  by  the  title  of  servant :  this  is 
comi)riscd  in  the  first  verse.  The  second  subdivision  announces 
the  nation's  success  in  terms  of  a  proportion,  declaring  that  this 
success  will  be  in  the  exact  ratio  of  its  pi'evious  depression  and 
distress ;  moreover,  precisely  as  the  depression  was  infinitely 
great,  so  will  the  subsequent  prosperity  be  infinitely  great  like- 
wise.    This  is  included  in  the  next  two  verses,  14,  15. 

The  second  part  contains  the  confession  and  acknowledgment 
which  will  be  made  by  the  kings  of  the  Gentiles  when  they  see 
the  success  and  safety  of  Israel :  this  part  falls  into  three  sub- 
divisions. In  the  first,  consisting  of  three  verses  (liii.  1-3),  the 
astonishment  of  the  kings  is  described  when  they  see  how  tbe 
'  dry  bones '  revived  and  received  from  God  prosperity.  The 
last  words.  He  ivas  despised,  and  toe  esteemed  him  not,  exhibit  in 
a  summary  form  how  severe  were  their  humiliation  and  suffer- 
ings, and  how  great  the  contempt  in  which  they  wei'e  lield  : 
nevertheless  the  arm  of  the  Lord  was  revealed  upon  them  in 
a  mysterious  and  wonderful  manner.  The  second  subdivision, 
consisting  of  verse  4,  recounts  the  confession  of  the  kings,  when 
they    exclaim,    We    are    verily   guilty,    in    that    we    saw    their 


lii^liii.]  R.  DAVID  dp:  uocca  martino.  199 

anguish ;  it  is  we,  and  not,  as  we  imagined,  they,  who  have 
sinned.  The  third  subdivision  enumerates  in  detail  the  various 
forms  of  distress  and  affliction  which  befel  them.  These  are 
four  in  number  :  i .  those  affecting  the  body,  i.  e.  martyrdom ; 
2.  those  affecting  property,  viz.  tribute  and  taxes;  3.  depri- 
vation of  the  rights  of  government  and  execution  of  justice ;  4. 
contempt  shewn  for  the  dead  by  forcing  open  their  sepulchres. 
The  first  of  these  four  is  described  in  verse  5,  '  he  was  wounded 
for  our  transgi-essions,'  alluding  to  those  who  were  put  to  death, 
and  endured  blows  and  stripes  for  the  sake  of  God's  holy  name, 
'  the  chastisement  of  our  peace  was  upon  him,'  alluding  to  the 
sufferings  which  fell  on  them ;  for  while  the  Gentiles  enjoyed  peace 
and  tranquillity,  Israel  were  in  '  sighing  and  great  distress,'  the 
strijjes  being  those  of  men  smitten  and  bruised  by  exile.  And 
because  their  distress  Avas  so  keen,  they  seize  the  opportunity 
of  confessing  (as  Joel  says,  iv.  21,  'I  will  hold  guiltless  their 
blood,  wliich  I  held  not  guiltless  before '),  All  ive  like  slieep,  etc., 
excusing  themselves  and  ci'aving  for  pardon,  saying,  O  let  us  not 
perish  for  the  life  of  these  men ;  for  thou,  0  Lord,  hast  only 
done  that  which  it  was  thy  pleasure  to  do.  The  second  form  of 
disti'ess,  which  affected  their  possessions,  is  mentioned  in  verse  7, 
where  the  words.  He  loas  oppressed,  and  he  was  afflicted,  are  an 
allusion  to  their  being  seized  and  tlu'own  into  prison  until  they 
had  paid  the  tributes  and  burdens  imposed  upon  them.  The 
prophet  adds.  Like  a  sheep,  bound  by  its  feet  when  led  to  the 
slaughter-house,  they  led  him  off  to  prison  until  a  'present'  for 
his  redemption  should  be  '  brought  to  him  that  is  to  be  feared ;' 
and  like  a  lamb  which  before  her  shearers  is  dumb,  in  allusion  to 
those  who  incessantly  year  after  year  laid  burdens  upon  them, 
leaving  them  robbed  like  a  shorn  lamb.  The  first  of  the  two 
clauses  will  thus  refer  to  unusual  or  extraordinary  burdens. 
The  third  form  of  distress  follows  in  verse  8.  The  authority 
and  functions  of  government  were  taken  away  from  him ;  he  had 
no  power  to  make  new  laws,  or  alter  the  judicial  procedure,  or 
dispose  anything  afresh  in  the  presence  of  his  contemporaries, 


^UO  R.  DAVID    DE    ROCCA    MARTINO.  [Hi,  liii. 

owing  to  the  fact  that  he  liad  been  expeUed  and  cut  off  from  the 
land  of  life  in  which  was  the  Polished  Hall »,  where  laws  were 
given  and  judgment  announced  to  Israel:  since,  fuither,  this 
exile  from  the  laud  of  life  was  notably  and  principally  caused  by 
a  great  blow  which  befel  the  nation  at  the  same  time,  the  final 
confession  is  appended,  *  For  the  transgression  of  my  people, 
(which  was)  a  blow  to  them  [to  Israel].'  The  fouiih  form  of 
distress,  relating  to  the  mode  of  burial,  is  described  in  verse  9 ; 
at  times  it  would  be  the  lot  of  the  nation,  or  '  despised' '  servant,' 
here  spoken  of,  to  be  ranked  with  the  wicked,  and  '  the  rich  who 
answereth  roughly'  (cf.  Prov,  xviii.  23),  so  that  those  belonging 
to  it  would  be  'drawn  and  cast  out'  (cf.  Jer.  xxii.  19),  and  not 
deemed  worthy  of  proper  burial.  Here  ends  the  second  part  of 
the  Parashah. 

The  third  part,  verses  10-12,  is  occupied  by  the  words  of  the 
prophet,  and  falls  into  three  subdivisions.  The  first  of  these, 
comprised  in  verse  10,  announces  how  the  'servant'  will  accept 
his  chastisements  in  love,  and  justify  the  judgment  passed  upon 
liim,  because  the  Lord  was  pleased  to  bruise  and  afflict  him, 
though  not  so  far  as  to  annihilate  him,  or  utterly  annul  his 
covenant  with  him ;  then,  after  his  wisdom  has  thus  decreed,  he 
will  naturally  find  his  delight  in  the  Lord's  pleasure,  so  that 
[instead  of  bringing  any  more  affliction  on  him]  it  will  now 
result  in  his  prosperity  and  freedom.  For  Grod  '  killeth  and 
maketh  alive,  he  bringeth  low  and  also  lifteth  up'  (i  Sam.  ii. 
7,  8),  and  'healeth  the  btroke  of  his  wound'  (Is.  xxx.  26).  The 
second  subdivision,  consisting  of  verse  11,  describes  how  the 
'  servant,'  so  soon  as  he  realises  his  deliverance  and  freedom,  will 
begin  to  proclaim  his  righteousness  in  public  before  the  eyes  of 
the  nations:  for  just  as  before  the  latter  had  condemned  them- 
selves, confessing  that  they  had  'all  gone  astray  like  sheep,'  so 
now  the  servant,  who  is  the  subject  of  the  prophecy,  will  main- 

»  Tlie  building  in  whidi  the  great  Sanliedrin  lield  its  sittings  •.  see  Ncubaucr, 
O'i'offr.  du  Talmud,  p.  144. 


lii,  liii.]  E.  DAVID    DE    ROCCA    MARTTNO.  201 

tiiiu  before  many  the  justice  of  his  cause,  declaring  that  he  is 
'just  in  liis  speaking,  and  clear  when  he  is  judged,'  because  the 
troubles  which  had  come  to  him  and  which  he  had  home,  were 
for  their  iniquities.  In  the  third  subdivision,  occupying  verse  12, 
the  prophet  solemnly  assures  the  '  servant'  that  he  will  be 
rewarded  sevenfold  for  all  that  had  been  taken  from  him  (in  the 
same  way  that  it  is  said,  Gen.  xv.  14,  with  reference  to  the  sub- 
jection in  Eg}7>t,  '  And  afterward  they  shall  come  forth  with 
gi-eat  substance')  :  this  is  alluded  to  in  the  words,  With  the 
mighty  he  shall  divide  spoil,  yiz.  in  return  for  his  servitude  and 
endui'Ance.  The  reward  will  come  to  him  from  the  Gentiles,  as 
a  I'ansom  or  offering  for  their  transgression,  in  accordance  with 
the  prophets'  declarations,  *  The  multitude  of  camels  shall  cover 
thee,'  etc.  (Is.  Ix.  6),  and  that  they  will  bring  their  offerings  into 
the  sanctuary  (as  he  continues,  verse  7,  'AH  the  flocks  of  Kedar,' 
etc.),  whilst  Israel  will  be  interceding  and  praying  for  them. 

Thk  exposition  is  ended  :    praise  be  to  God  ! 


XXXI.     R.  SA'ADYAH   IBN   DANAN. 


Says  Sa'adyah,  son  of  R.  Maimun,  Ibn  Danan  :  Behold  in  tlie 
Lord's  compassion  on  me,  he  hath  put  in  my  heart  intelligence 
and  knowledge  to  comprehend  and  understand  the  words  of  the 
wise  who  expound  the  Scriptures,  to  consider  attentively  things 
secret  and  sealed  up,  and  to  solve  hard  and  difficult  problems : 
he  hath  also  brought  me  forth  and  set  me  outside  the  city 
of  chatterers  and  praters,  and  of  all  them  that  are  perplexed 
and  confused.  And  my  mouth  and  tongue  have  resolved  not  to 
utter  words  without  sense,  or  to  raise  their  voice  '  in  storm  and 
tempest/  or  exhibit  an  angiy  countenance  ;  but,  like  the  wise 
(Eccles.  ix.  17),  that  I  should  publish  my  words  'in  quietness,' 
and  of  the  '  uprightness  of  mine  heart'  (Job  xxxiii.  3)  address  my 
companions  and  friends. 

I  was  perusing  the  book  of  the  prophet  Isaiah,  and  when  I 
came  to  the  Parashah  Behold  my  servant,  I  set  before  myself 
the  notes  of  those  who  had  commented  upon  it,  and  pondered 
over  them  and  examined  the  opinions  they  contained.  But  all 
alike,  I  found,  lacked  solidity  and  soundness  :  as  was  the  more 
palpable,  since  each  differed  from  the  rest  in  the  subject  to  whom 
he  supposed  it  to  refer,  some  expounding  the  Parashah  of  the 
congregation  of  Israel  as  a  whole,  and  others,  in  one  way  or 
another,  of  the  King  Messiah,  who  will  speedily  be  revealed 
in  our  days.  This,  in  fact,  is  done  by  our  Eabbis,  who,  in  the 
section  Heleq^,  on  the  words  To  the  increase  of  government 
(Is.  ix.  7),  expound  as  follows  : — The  Holy  One  sought  to  make 

»  Sanhedrin,  94*. 


R.  sa'adyah  ibn  danan.  203 

Hezekiah  the  Messiah;  and  [to  make]  Sanherib,  Gog  and  Magog: 
and  the  heretics  explain  it  of  their  Messiah,  by  their  method  of 
interpretation  discovering  in  it  arguments  relating  to  his  passion 
and  death,  and  their  false  belief  in  him,  which,  however,  have 
been  refuted  oftentimes  with  unequivocal  pz'oofs  by  learned 
Jews.  One  of  these,  R.  Joseph  ben  Kaspi,  was  led  so  far  as  to 
say  that  those  who  expounded  it  of  the  ]\Iessiah,  who  is  shortly 
to  be  revealed,  gave  occasion  to  the  heretics  to  interpret  it  of 
Jesus.  May  God,  however,  forgive  him  for  not  having  spoken 
the  truth  !  our  Rabbis,  the  doctors  of  the  Thalmud,  deliver 
their  opinions  by  the  power  of  prophecy,  possessing  a  tradition 
concerning  the  principles  of  interpretation,  so  that  their  words 
are  the  truth.  The  principle  which  every  expositor  ought  to 
rest  upon  is  never  to  shrink  from  declaring  the  truth  ;  in  order 
that  such  as  are  foolish  may  not  err :  for  our  God  will  not 
destroy  anything  out  of  his  world  for  the  sake  of  fools  who 
worship  his  creatures.  And  now  I  will  make  known  what  has 
been  communicated  to  me  from  heaven,  how,  namely,  the 
Parashah  was  originally  uttered  with  reference  to  Hezekiah, 
king  of  Judali  and  Israel,  but,  being  'a  Avord  sjDoken  deftly^' 
(Prov.  XXV.  ii),  nevertheless  alludes  covertly  to  the  King 
Messiah.  In  this  respect  the  Parashah  Balaam  (Num.  xxii.  i — 
XXV.  9)  forms  a  parallel  to  it,  speaking,  as  it  does,  ostensibly  of 
king  David,  but  alluding  covertly  to  the  Messiah.  And,  simi- 
larly, there  is  no  doubt  that  the  building  of  the  temple  in 
Ezekiel  refers  to  the  third  Temple  as  well  as  to  the  second ; 
for  though  our  Rabbis,  in  the  tract  Middoth'^,  adduce  from  it  a 
proof  respecting  the  construction  of  the  latter,  the  gathering 
together  of  all  the  tribes,  the  division  of  the  land  into  thirteen 
parts  (Ezekiel  xlviii),  the  gates  named  after  the  twelve 
tribes  (xlviii.  31),  and  the  installation-offerings  which  are 
spoken  of  (chap,  xlv),  have  hitherto  neither  existed  nor  been 
created.     It  is  beyond  doubt,  then,  that  this   prophecy,  being 

^  And  accordingly  capable  of  a  double  meaning.  <=  ii.  5- 


204  K.  sa'adyah  ibn  danan. 

likewise  '  a  word  spoken  deftly,'  while  it  refers  directly  to  the 
second  Temple,  is  at  the  same  time  intended  to  point  covertly 
to  the  third  :  becauise,  though  the  hopes  and  expectations  of 
the  generation  in  which  Ezekiel  lived  were  centred  in  the 
former,  yet  the  aim  of  tlie  prophet  and  the  scope  of  his  pre- 
dictions extended  to  the  latter ;  and  God  forbid  tliat,  when 
promising  prosperity,  a  prophet  should  assume  an  extravagant 
or  hjqierbolical  style,  which  in  general  is  only  adopted  by  them 
for  proverbial  sayings,  or  in  declarations  of  terror,  or  rebuke. 
The  central  idea  in  the  Parashah  is  the  greatness  of  king  Heze- 
kiah,  his  prosperity,  his  righteousness,  the  merits  which  accrued 
to  hini  therefrom  at  the  time  when  he  and  his  people  were 
delivered  from  the  hand  of  Sanherib,  and  the  troubles  which 
came  upon  him  subsequently  from  Sanherib  and  his  hosts. 
Now  Isaiah's  prophecies  wei-e  composed  with  the  view  of  de- 
scribing the  fall  of  Sanherib  and  of  his  army.  From  the  Para- 
shah IIo  Assyria  I  (Is.  x.  5  if.)  to  the  Parashah  Sanherib  (xxxvi.  i  fF.), 
he  treats  of  various  events  connected  with  his  history,  according 
to  the  visions  received  by  him  on  different  occasions  ;  at  one  time 
speaking  of  the  fall  of  Sanherib  himself ;  at  another,  of  the  fall 
of  Babylon  with  him  (for  Babylon  was  contiguous  to  Assyria, 
and,  at  the  time  in  question,  under  the  dominion  of  Sanherib) ; 
then  again  of  the  greatness  and  goodness  of  Hezekiah ;  then 
of  the  exile  of  the  ten  tribes ;  next  of  the  events  of  the  Baby- 
lonian captivity.  After  all  this  he  annexes  the  Parashah  San- 
herib  (Is.  xxxvi.  i  ff.)  for  the  purpose  of  exhibiting  how,  in  the 
destruction  of  Sanherib  and  his  host,  his  own  predictions  had 
been  fulfilled,  together  with  an  account  of  Hezekiah's  sickness, 
of  the  miracle  which  was  wrought  when  the  sun  went  back,  and 
of  the  prophecy  uttered  by  himself  at  the  time  when  the  embas- 
sage from  the  king  of  Babylon  came  to  Jerusalem.  Then 
follow  chaps,  xl.  I — lii,  12,  relating  similarly  to  differeiit  subjects, 
according  to  the  visions  received  by  the  prophet,  some  describing 
the  prosperity  and  tranquillity  during  the  days  of  Hezekiah, 
a)id  others  (as  I  believe)  anuouucing  the  salvation  which  was  to 


lii.  13.]  R.  sa'adyah  ibn  danan".  205 

come  to  pass  at  the  building  of  the  second  and  third  Temples. 
And  so  we  thus  arrive  at  the  Parashah  now  before  us,  couched 
in  a  highly  concise  and  elegant  style,  and  embracing  a  history  of 
Hezekiah,  but  at  the  same  time  pointing  distantly  (as  I  have 
said)  to  the  King  Messiah  (who  is  speedily  to  be  revealed  in  our 
own  days).  And  if  you  object  that  the  various  Parashahs  and 
prophecies  of  Isaiah  follow  a  definite  order,  and  wonder  there- 
fore why  this  one,  which  ought  to  have  preceded  the  Parashah 
Sanherib,  is  placed  so  late,  we  shall  reply  that  Sanherib's  fall 
had  already  been  described  before  the  Parashah  which  bears  his 
name,  that  the  principal  idea  in  the  pi'ophecy  befoz-e  us  is  the 
prosperity  and  greatness  of  Hezekiah,  which  belong  to  a  later 
date,  and,  moreover,  that  it  alludes  besides  to  the  Messiah. 

LII.  *^The  prophet  begins.  My  servant  T2\i^'^,  meaning  thereby 
to  say  that  Hezekiah,  who  had  prudence  and  understanding, 
and  adhered  to  the  Law  and  commandments  of  his  God,  not 
dealing  foolishly  like  his  father,  who  transgressed  and  served 
false  gods,  shall  prosper:  for  P"'DK'n  means  both  to  he 
prudent  and  to  he  prosperous  (as  i  Sam.  xviii.  14).  In  the 
same  way,  learned  men  intei-pret  yiDK',  in  Deut.  vi.  4,  '  Hear, 
0  Israel,'  to  signify  not  merely  that  they  are  to  hear  and  receive, 
but  also  that  they  are  to  hear  and  understand.  He  shall  he 
high,  etc.  Our  Rabbis  expound  this  in  a  Midrash  of  the  King 
Messiah,  saying,  '  He  shall  be  higher  than  Abraham,  exalted 
above  Moses,  and  loftier  than  the  ministering  angels.'  Simi- 
lai-ly  it  is  said  of  Hezekiah  that  he  was  the  ^Messiah  of  his 
generation,  because  the  miracle  wrought  for  him  at  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  Assyrian  camp  was  greater  than  the  battle  of  Abra- 
ham against  the  four  kings,  when  he  said,  '  I  raise  high  my  hand 
unto  the  Lord'  (Gen.  xiv.  22).  Greater,  too,  than  the  battle  of 
Moses  against  Sihon  and  Og,  when  the  Holy  One  exalted  him 
by  smiting  them,  saying  (Deut.  ii.  25),  '  This  day  will  I  begin 
to  put  the  dread  of  thee  and  the  fear  of  thee  before  the  face  of 
all  nations.'  Greater,  lastly,  than  the  overthrow  of  Sodom  and 
Gomorrlia  by  the  angels,  when  'brimstone  and  fire'  descended 


^06  R.  sa'adyaii  tbn  danAn.  [Hi.  14- 

upon  their  inhabitants  out  of  heaven,  so  that  all  were  burnt  up ; 
for  in  the  case  of  the  Assyrian  soldiers,  while  their  spiritual 
nature  was  consumed,  their  bodies  were  preserved  alive.  And 
so  our  Rabbis  expound  Is.  x.  1 6, '  Under  his  glory  he  shall  kindle 
a  burning,'  of  a  conflagi-ation  of  the  soul  but  preservation  of  the 
body^l.  But  the  simple  sense  of  the  text  is  this,  that  he  would 
be  high  and  exalted  on  account  of  his  success,  and  lofty  at  his 
latter  end  exceedingly :  and  so  it  is  written  in  the  book  of 
Chronicles  (II.  xxxii.  25)  that  '  his  heart  luas  lofty''  and  elevated 
after  he  had  been  cured  of  his  sickness  and  was  confirmed  in 
prosperity.  "The  Holy  Spirit  tells  the  prophet — or  else  the 
prophet  says  so  to  himself — how  inany  of  the  people  were 
astonished  and  surprised  at  the  promise  of  Sanherib's  fall  before 
Jerusalem,  because  he  had  taken  all  the  fenced  cities  of  Judah, 
and  laid  siege  to  the  capital  (Is.  xxxvi.  i),  so  that  they  would 
not  believe  Isaiah's  words.  Or,  according  to  another  explana- 
tion, the  people  expected  that  the  prophet's  intercession  would 
deliver  them,  so  that  the  wicked  amongst  them  were  astonished 
at  Isaiah,  saying.  What  do  we  care  about  a  prophet  who  will 
not  rescue  us  from  this  distress  ?  In  a  similar  strain,  Jehoram, 
son  of  Ahab,  exclaims  (2  Kings  vi.  31),  'If  the  head  of  Ehsha, 
son  of  Shaphat,  shall  stand  on  him  this  day  ! '  because  he  thought 
that  Elisha,  if  he  chose,  could  raise  the  siege,  and  so  liberate 
him.  So  marred,  etc.  The  countenance  of  the  '  servant ' 
(i.  e.  Hezekiah)  was  marred,  and  his  form  disfigured,  on  account 
of  the  trouble  and  pain  endured  by  him,  and  the  fasting  and 
affliction  which  he  underwent ;  for  the  iniquities  of  the  people, 
and  their  deeds  in  the  days  of  his  father,  filled  him  with  fear, 
lest  perhaps  they  might  have  caused  the  fatal  decree  to  be 
passed  against  them.  Scripture  states,  however,  that  his  prayer 
was  accepted  (Is.  xxxvii.  21  ff.),  and  that  his  righteousness 
stood  him  in  good  stead,  although  the  people  attributed  his 
success  to  the  merits  of  David  his  father.      ^°The  promise  to 

'^  Sanhedrin,  94". 


-liii.  2.]  R.  sa'adyah  ibn  danAn.  207 

Hezekiah,  how,  for  his  merits  in  the  endurance  of  distress, 
and  in  trustful  dependence  upon  his  God,  he  should  declare  to 
many  nations  and  kings,  when  they  ask  him  about  the  miracle 
which  '  was  done  in  the  earth'  (and  which  they  will  know  of, 
since  it  'made  the  earth  to  tremble  and  kingdoms  to  quake'), 
the  providence  of  his  God  towards  him,  and  the  signs  and 
wonders  which  he  wrought.  Or  T\V  p  may  mean,  He  will  make 
them  ash  about  the  miracle,  for  both  he  himself  and  the  prophets 
with  him  had  the  reputation  of  possessing  great  wisdom :  and 
just  as  the  king  of  Babylon  sent  to  enquire  concerning  it  (2  Chron. 
xxxii.  31),  so  other  kings  and  princes  will  enquire  likewise. 
Those  kings,  however,  who  have  the  design  of  going  up  against 
his  land,  and  fighting  against  him,  will  close  their  mouths,  and 
desist  from  speaking  against  him,  in  alarm,  lest  that  which 
happened  to  the  army  of  Sanherib  should  happen  also  to  them  ; 
for  that  lohich  had  not  been  told  them  Jiave  tliey  seen — they  saw 
the  going  back  of  the  sun,  before  they  had  been  told  of  the 
miracle  vouchsafed  to  Hezekiah,  and  that  which  they  had  not 
heard  they  have  perceived — the  destruction,  without  sword  or 
battle,  of  such  a  vast  host  as  that  of  the  Assyrians,  had  never 
been  heard  of,  though  now  they  knew  that  it  had  taken  place. 
Or  both  clauses  may  be  parallel,  intimating  that  the  fall  of  San- 
herib had  not  been  told  them,  and  that  tliey  had  not  heard  of  it. 

LIII.  ^But  even  if  what  had  happened  in  the  former  days 
(i.  e.  the  fall  of  the  Assyrian)  were  told  them,  who  would  believe 
a  report  such  as  that  would  be  1  or  U2wn  whom  of  the  nations 
was  the  arm  of  the  Lord  ever  revealed  to  work  for  them  a 
miracle  so  great  as  this  1  ^And  he  came  up  as  a  sucker  be/ore 
him,  for  through  the  merits  of  the  righteous  shepherd  [David] 
he  flourished  like  a  blooming  tree ;  and  so  it  is  written,  '  There 
shall  come  forth  a  rod  out  of  the  stump  of  Jesse,  and  a  branch 
out  of  his  roots  shall  be  fruitful'  (Is.  xi.  i).  As  a  root  out  of  tlie 
dry  earth :  because  Hezekiah  was  just,  and  pious,  and  wise,  and 
followed  after  the  Law  and  the  commandments  diligently,  not- 
withstanding that  he   had  been  brought  up  in  the  house  of 


208  R.  sa'adyah  ibn  danAn.  [liii.3- 

liis  father,  the  wicked  renegade  Aliaz ;  for  lie  rejected  all  his 
father's  deeds,  and  from  his  youth  accustomed  himself  to  adhere 
closely  to  the  law  of  the  Lord.  The  righteous  is  sj^okeu  of  as  a 
sucker  and  root,  and  the  wicked  and  his  house  as  the  dry  earth, 
after  the  manner  of  Deut.  xxix.  18.  He  had  no  form  or  come- 
liness, because  during  his  youth  he  was  in  such  constant  grief 
and  distress  on  account  of  the  deeds  of  his  father  that  this, 
coupled  with  the  fire  which  his  father  made  him  pass  through 
when  he  was  small,  caused  him  to  be  ailing.  Our  Rabbis  have, 
in  fact,  a  tradition  to  the  effect  that  he  was  anointed  by  his 
mother  with  the  oil  of  the  salamander  ^,  and  so  preserved  from 
the  flames,  while  all  Ahab's  other  sons  perished  in  the  fiery 
oven  which  he  made  them  pass  through  in  honour  of  the  idol ; 
and  that  when  elevated  to  the  throne  he  had  none  of  the  majesty 
generally  possessed  by  a  king's  son,  because  he  had  always  been 
disputing  with  his  father.  And  now,  Isaiah  continues,  we  see 
Mm,  but  do  not  fill  our  eyes  with  the  sight  of  him,  because, 
in  our  love  for  him,  the  desire  of  our  heart  is  that  no  evil  eye 
should  gain  power  over  him  :  therefore  tve  see  him  and  desire 
him — we  have  no  wish  except  that  he  may  enjoy  long  life,  and 
that  our  sons  may  resemble  him  in  being  righteous,  and  prudent, 
and  good.  ^Ile  was  despised,  viz.,  by  Sanherib  and  Rabshakeh, 
who  treated  with  contempt  his  kingdom,  his  worship,  and  his  con- 
fidence in  his  God,  saying,  '  Where  are  the  gods  of  Hamath  and 
Ai-padl'  (Is.  xxxvi.  19);  and,  'Where  is  the  king  of  Hamath 
and  the  king  of  Arpad  V  (Is.  xxxvii.  13) ;  '  Give  pledges  to  my 
master,  and  let  not  Hezekiah  deceive  you'  (vers.  8,  14),  etc. ;  and 
ceasing  from  m,en,  because  he  desisted  from  fighting,  and  relied 
upon  prayer,  although  in  the  eyes  of  Sanherib  he  seemed  to  be 
entirely  destitute  of  strength,  for  he  speaks  of  him  (ver.  14)  as 
not  being  able  to  deliver  them.  A  man  of  pains  and  known  to 
sickness :  because  he  was  pained  in  heart  and  distressed  at  the 
reproaches  cast  at  him  by  the  '  attendants  of  the  king  of  Assyria' 

o  See  Buxtorf,  s.  V.  N-n:D'?D. 


-liii.  4-]  R.  sa'adyah  ibx  danAn.  209 

(ver.  6),  and  sick  in  body  from  lamentation  and  grief.  And  so 
there  is  a  Midrash  to  the  effect  that  Hczekiah  had  an  illness 
previous  to  the  one  in  which  he  was  'sick  unto  death'  (Is. 
xxxviii.  i) ',  the  addition  unto  death  implying  that  another 
sickness  had  })receded — pex-haps  during  the  siege  of  Sanherib — 
which  was  not  unto  death.  And  as  one  hiding  his  face  from  us  : 
for  he  heard  himself  reproached  by  the  people  and  their  captains, 
who  advised  submission  to  the  AssjTian,  and  declared  that 
Hezekiah  the  king  was  attempting  to  entrap  them  :  he  acted, 
however,  like  one  who  hid  his  face  from  them,  and  as  though 
he  neither  heai'd  what  they  said  nor  knew  their  thoughts.  So 
there  is  a  Midrash  in  which  our  Rabbis  say  that  Shebna  the 
scribe  wrote  on  a  leaf,  '  Shebna  submits  and  Hezekiah  rebels,' 
and  winding  it  round  an  aiTOW,  shot  it  into  the  camp  of  the 
king  of  Assyria  s.  He  was  despised  and  we  esteemed  him  not : 
even  some  of  his  own  people  despised  him,  not  thinking  him  to 
be  so  just  and  pious,  or  worthy  to  have  such  a  great  miracle 
wrought  for  him  as  the  deliverance  proved  to  be.  *  Surely  he 
carried  our  sicknesses,  etc.  Hezekiah  was  a  mighty  man  of 
valour  both  in  heart  and  in  body,  and  although  anxiety  and  fear 
lest  the  transgression  of  his  people  might  cause  them  some 
mischief  had  distorted  his  countenance  and  form,  yet  he 
exhibited  no  terror  or  alarm  before  Sanherib,  but  '  comforted ' 
and  encouraged  the  people  to  such  a  degree  as  to  remove  the 
sickness  and  pain  jn'oduced  in  their  hearts  b}^  fear.  Accordingly 
he  says  (2  Chron.  xxxii.  7),  'Be  strong  and  courageous,  be  not 
afraid;'  and  (ver.  8),  'With  him  is  an  arm  of  flesh,  but  with 
us  is  the  arm  of  the  Lord  our  God  to  help  us  :'  so  that  when 
through  his  merits  and  intercession  the  deliverance  was  wrought, 
it  was  as  though  he  had  borne  and  carried  all  their  sicknesses 
and  pains.  The  people,  however,  still  thought  he  would  be 
taken  by  the  king  of  Assj'ria,  and  smitten  and  afflicted  by  his 
hands — contrary  to  what  actually  happened ;  for  his  righteous- 

'  B'reshith  Eabba,  c.  65,  s  Thalm.  Bab.,  Sanhednn,  26"*. 

P 


210  -R.  sa'adyah  ibn  danan.  [liii.  s- 

ness  and  prayers  protected  both  himself  and  them  ;  but  the 
people  did  not  possess  his  faith,  or  have  confidence  in  his 
righteousness  and  devotion  to  God,  for  amongst  them  still 
lingered  some  wicked  ones  from  the  days  of  Ahaz.  By  'smitten 
of  God^  the  prophet  means  to  say  smitten  severely  :  the  Divine 
name  is  added  for  the  purpose  of  intensifying  the  meaning,  as 
in  the  expressions  'flame  of  Jah'  (Cant.  viii.  6),  'mountains  of 
Ood'  (Ps.  xxxvi.  7).  ^But  he  was  panged  and  bruised  for  the 
iniquities  and  transgressions  committed  in  the  days  of  his  father, 
when  they  forsook  the  Law  and  the  service  of  God  :  the  instruc- 
tion of  our  2}eace — i.  e.  of  the  Law  and  the  commandments — 
was  U'pon  him  ;  he  undertook  the  office  of  instructor,  and  by 
his  constant  efforts  brought  back  the  nation  to  goodness,  esta- 
blishing a  multitude  of  schools  in  which  the  Law  was  taught  and 
enforced.  Our  Rabbis  thus  expound  as  follows  : — '■And  the  yoke 
shall  he  destroyed  because  of  fatness  (Is.  x.  27),  i.  c.  the  yoke  of 
Sanherib  by  the  fatness  of  Hezekiah.  \A1iat  did  he  do  1  He 
affixed  a  sword  at  the  entrance  to  every  place  of  study,  saying, 
Every  one  who  does  not  occupy  himself  with  the  Law  shall 
be  pierced  through  with  this  sword.  They  sought,  therefore, 
from  Dan  to  Beersheba,'  etc.'i  And  by  his  associations  ive  were 
healed  ;  by  the  companies  which  he  brought  together  in  the 
different  schools  for  the  study  of  the  Law,  those  who  attended 
them  were  healed  for  their  transgressions  (as  Is.  vi.  10),  as 
though  to  say,  Through  their  study  of  the  Law,  to  promote 
which  Hezekiah  thus  forcibly  associated  them,  they  received 
pardon  for  their  iniquities,  being  made  aware  that  they  had 
been  healed  (i.  e.  forgiven),  by  the  great  deliverance  from  San- 
herib. ^ All  we  like  sheep  had  (/one  astray — all  had  cried  in  their 
counsels,  one  saying.  Let  us  serve  the  king  of  Assyria  !  another, 
Let  us  go  out  and  fight !  a  third,  Let  us  go  out  and  escape  ! 
Hach  had  turned  after  his  oivn  way,  i.  e.  the  way  suggested 
by  himself.      Or,  according  to  another  view,  the  expressions 

*  Sank.,  94''.  The  quotation  continues, ' and  none  was  found  ignorant  of  it.' 


-liii.8.]  R,  Sa'aDYAH    IBN    DANAN.  211 

have  refereuce  to  the  clays  of  Ahaz,  before  Hezekiah  had  con- 
verted thera  to  the  way  of  the  Lord,  when  they  2vent  astray  like 
sheep,  each  to  his  ouni  way,  doing  wliat  was  right  in  his  own 
eyes,  and  not  enquiring  of  the  Lord.  Yet  the  Lord  through  him 
condoned  the  iniquity  of  iis  all — let  himself  be  entreated  by  him, 
and  received  his  prayer,  forgiving  their  iniquity  and  saving 
them,  yjsn  means  to  receive  prayer,  just  as  yjQ  means  to  pray 
(Jer.  vii.  i6);  the  same  difference  existing  between  them  as 
between  inyj  and  "inj?  i.  And  12  signifies /or  his  sake.  ''lie  was 
oppressed,  viz.  by  Sanherib,  and  lie  was  afflicted  by  the  reproaches 
of  Rabshakeh,  yet  he  opened  not  his  mouth  to  answer  them,  as  it 
is  written,  '  For  the  king's  commandment  was,  saying.  Ye  shall 
not  answer  him'  (Is,  xxxvi.  21)  :  as  a  lamh  he  was  led  to  the 
slaughter,  for,  like  Zedekiah  who  rebelled  against  Nebuchad- 
nezzar, he  had  been  destined  to  be  delivered  into  the  hands 
of  the  king  of  Assyria,  and  would  indeed  have  been  delivered  to 
him  except  for  the  salvation  of  the  Lord.  And  possibly  also  the 
wicked  among  the  people  spoke  of  him  as  being  thus  about  to 
be  delivered  up,  and  slain  by  Sanherib  for  having  rebelled 
against  him.  As  a  lamh  dumb  before  her  shearers,  so  he  opened 
not  his  mouth :  his  captains  and  servants  kept  devouring  his 
substance,  and  wished  to  submit  to  the  king  of  Assyria ;  but 
Hezekiah,  though  he  knew  of  it,  was  silent,  trusting  with  all 
his  heart  in  his  God.  It  is  the  custom  of  kings  during  war  or 
a  siege  to  double  and  even  quadruple  their  soldiers'  pay.  ^  For 
his  sovereignty  and  judgment  he  teas  chosen.  1^*y  has  the  sense 
of  regal  potuer,  cf.  i  Sam.  ix.  17,  and  np7  signifies  to  take  or 
choose,  as  Deut.  iv.  20 :  the  meaning  of  the  phrase  being  that 
because  Hezekiah  attended  to  the  laws  of  the  realm,  and 
observed  the  judgment  of  the  Law,  to  do  what  was  good  and 
right  in  the  eyes  of  the  Lord,  God  had  chosen  him  and  raised 
him  to  power ;  for  Hezekiah  was  both  king  and  a  father  of 
the  Court.     And  xoho  could  teach  hif(  generation  the  Law,  as 

'  See,  for  example,  Gen.  xxv.  21 ;  comp.  Qamhi,  s.  v.  Tn?. 
P  2 


212  R.  sa'adyah  ibn  danan.  [liii.f)- 

Hczekiali  could,  if  he  had  succumbed  to  his  sickness  and  been  cut 
of  out  of  the  land  of  the  living  1 — as  he  says, '  Jah,  Jah,  in  the 
laud  of  the  living  I  shall  not  behold  !'  (Is.  xxxviii.  1 1.)  nnVu'  is 
a  transitive  verb  with  a  double  object :  to  make  others  meditate 
in  the  words  of  the  Law.  For  the  transgression,  etc. :  as  though 
to  say  that  for  the  people's  transgression  he  was  sick  and  in 
danger  of  death,  and  that  for  their  iniquity  a  just  I'uler,  such 
as  he  was,  was  nearly  lost  to  them  :  the  sense  thus  resembles 
that  of  Is.  Ivii.  i,  '  Because  of  the  wickedness,  the  just  is  taken 
away.'  The  prophet  says,  A  ' stroke  k'  upon  them,  because  the  boil 
from  which  he  suffered  would  have  injured  them  still  more  had 
he  died  from  it :  since  for  the  death  of  this  'just '  one  they  would 
have  been  exposed  to  terrible  calamities,  and  to  the  liability 
of  having  their  iniquities  visited  upon  thera.  ^Already  had 
great  distress  come  upon  him  when  he  was  firet  besieged  in 
Jerusalem,  and  when  he  seemed  to  be  buried  in  the  midst  of 
the  iviched  hosts  besieging  him,  i.  e.  the  Assyrian  army.  Heze- 
kiah's  tomb  is  [spoken  of  by  anticipation]  like  Shebna's 
(Is.  xxii.  1 6)1.  And  the  rich — i.e.  simply  the  king,  as  Eccles, 
X.  2o — was  on  his  high  places  :  through  fear  of  Sanherib, 
Hezekiah  was  constantly  offering  prayer  and  supplication  in 
his  high  places,  i.  e.  iu  the  Sanctuary  and  the  School.  The  form 
of  the  Temple  was  that  of  one  hall  rising  above  another,  like  so 
many  high  places.  And  all  these  troubles,  arising  from  San- 
herib's  i^resence  and  Hezekiah's  sickness,  were  not  oiving  to 
any  injustice  ivhich  he  had  committed  while  giving  judgment  in 
his  court,  or  to  any  deceit/ulness  in  his  mouth,  declaring  itself 
in  the  laws  of  his  realm  ;  '"  but  happened  because  the  Lord  chose 
to  bruise  and  sicken  him  for  his  refusal  (as  our  Rabbis  relate  i^) 
to  'be  fruitful  and  multiply;'  since,  although  his  intention  was 
excellent,  viz.  that  no  wicked   son  might  proceed   out  of  his 

''  The  word  is  used  technically  of  the '  stroke '  of  leprosy.  Lev.  xiii.  tljrougli- 
out  (A. V.  'plague'). 

1  Comp.  above,  p.  82.  ">  Yalqut,  Kings,  §  242. 


-liii.  12.]  1!.  sa'adyah   ibn  danaN.  213 

loins — yet,  iiiasnmch  iis  it  involved  a  frustration  of  the  Divine 
conimaml,  tlie  Almighty  brought  punishment  upon  him  so  as  to 
slay  him,  rewarding  him  measure  for  measure  ;  for  God  '  created 
not  the   earth   for   a  waste,    he   formed   it  to   be   inhabited' 
(Is.  xlv.  1 8).     If,  however.  Ids  mtd  makes  a  irespass-ojerin;/, 
and  atones  for  its  sin  by  obeying  the  commandment,  he  will 
then  have  seed,  and  lenythen  days  (as  the  prophet  promises, 
Is.  xxxviii.  5,  '  Behold  I  add  to  thy  days  fifteen  years'),  and  the 
pleasureof  the  Lord,  his  position  as  king  and  judge,  tvill  2>T0sper 
ill  his  hand :  accordingly  the  promise  runs  on  (ver.  6),  '  And 
from  the  hand  of  the  king  of  Assyria  I  will  deliver  thee,  and 
this  city,'  so  that  Hezekiah  would  have  tranquillity  and  peace 
for  carrying  on  the  government,  and  executing  judgment  in  the 
Law  of  the  Lord,  and  in  obedience  to  what  was  right  in  his 
eyes.     ^^  For  the  laboicr  of  his  soul — the  labour  exerted  by  it  in 
studying  the  Law — he  ivill  see  the  ti'uth,  win  the  favour  of  his 
Creator,  and  be  satisfied  with  prosperity  :  every  one  capable  of 
being  just  and  wise  loill  my  servant  make  righteous  so  as  through 
him  to  bring  advantage  to  many  hy  his  knowledge  and  wisdom, 
and  devotedness  in  teaching  them  the  Law ;  and  their  iniquities 
which  were  resting  upon  them,  by  his  righteousness  and  wisdom 
which  he  taught  them,  Jie  will  bear — he  will  protect  the  genei-a- 
tion  in  which  he  lives,  so  that  no  evil  thing  may  be  found  in 
it,  but  only  peace,  happiness,  and  wisdom,  as  he  says  himself 
(Is.  xxxix.  8),  'There  shall  be  peace  and  truth  in  my  days.' 
^"^  Therefore  I  will  divide  him  a  portion  with  the  many :  for  God 
awarded  him  both  riches  and  honour,  and  lifted  him  up  in  the 
sight  of  all  nations,  as  is  recorded,  2  Chron.  xxxii.  23.    And  the 
mighty  he  shall  divide  as  spoil — for  he  was  given  the  plunder  of 
Sanherib's  army:  in  'the  mighty'  there  is  an  allusion  to  the 
plunder  of  the  ten  tribes,  which  had  been  in   the  possession 
of  Sanherib's  host,  but  was  then  recovered  by  Hezekiah ;  and 
the  expression  '  he  shall  divide  spoil'  is  employed,  because  it 
was  customary  for  half  of  it  to  belong  to  the  king,  and  half  to 
the  army.     But  just  before,  'divide*  has  a  different  sense  :  there 


214  n.  sa'adyaii  ibn  danan.  [liii.  12. 

the  allusion  is  to  the  presents  sent  to  him  by  the  kings  and 
captains ;  becaiTse  after  the  great  mii'acle  had  been  wronght 
for  him  he  became  amongst  them  as  a  'prince  of  God":'  pbu, 
like  ni*n,  is  thus  used  of  division  into  either  equal  or  unequal 
portions.  Because  he  poured  out  his  soul  to  die :  when  the 
siege  was  first  bcgnn  by  the  king  of  Assyria,  some  of  Hezekiah's 
captains  treacherously  formed  the  plan  of  winning  Sanhcrib's 
favour  at  the  price  of  their  master's  head  ;  Hczekiah,  however, 
reasoned  that  if  a  miracle  were  wrought  for  him,  all  would 
of  course  be  well,  and  if  his  sin  caused  events  to  take  a  difterent 
turn,  he  would  die  in  the  service  of  his  God  :  he  thus,  so  to 
speak,  '  j^oured  out  his  soul  to  die.'  And  he  was  mcmhered  with 
the  transgressors,  viz.  when  Sanherib  put  him  into  the  same 
category  with  the  kings  of  Hamath,  Arjjad,  and  Sepharvaim 
(Is.  xxxvii.  1 3),  and  when  Rabshakeh  accounted  him  a  trans- 
gressor, saying  (ver.  "7),  'Is  not  this  he,  whose  high  places  and 
altars  Hezekiah  hath  taken  away?'  But  he  hare  the  sin  of 
many — he  was  perfectly  just,  so  that  his  people  were  delivered 
for  his  merits,  and  he  carried  the  sins  and  transgressions  which 
they  had  committed  in  the  days  of  his  father  :  conti'ary,  there- 
fore, to  what  Sanherib  and  Rabshakeh  expected,  the  people  were 
not  on  his  account  involved  in  any  disaster.  And  made  inter- 
cession for  the  transgressors — he  was  constantly  praying  on 
behalf  of  his  generation,  and  oftentimes  God  let  himself  be 
entreated  by  him  :  yjD^  expresses  continued  action,  but  Scripture 
docs  not  mention  all  the  deliverances  and  wonders  which  were 
vouchsafed  to  him.  After  the  fall  of  Sanherib,  and  victory 
of  Hezekiah,  numbers  belonging  to  Israel  gathered  themselves 
together  from  distant  parts,  and  coming  to  the  land  of  Israel 
and  Jerusalem,  united  themselves  with  the  poor  of  the  people 
whom  Shalmanezer  had  left,  and  thus  the  whole  country  from 
Dan  even  unto  Beersheba  (which,  as  appears  from  i  Sam.  iii. 

°  To  whom,  therefore,  it  was  fitting  that  presents  should  be  given :  ct'. 
Gen.  xxiii.  6. 


liii.  12.]  R.  sa'adyah  ibn  danan.  215 

20,  are  its  boundaries)  became  consolidated  and  settled.  And 
so  it  is  related  how  Hezekiah  'sent  to  all  Israel  and  Judah' 
(2  Chron.  xxx.  i,  cf.  5).  Our  Rabbis  say  in  the  section  Heleqo, 
that  in  the  days  of  Hezekiah  search  was  made  from  Dan  imto 
Beersheba,  and  lo,  he  reigned  over  both  Israel  and  Judah  like 
David  his  father,  and  that  this  is  the  reason  why  Isaiah  has 
annexed  to  this  Parashah  the  one  beginning  Shout,  0  barren  one  ; 
whei'e  Jenisalem  is  thus  addressed,  because  a  vast  multitude 
from  Israel  were  collected  in  her,  so  that  the  city  was  firmly  and 
compactly  established,  and  her  inhabitants  wei'e  more  numerous 
than  those  of  the  kingdom  of  Samai'ia.  For  this  reason  the 
prophet  bids  her  shout  and  he  glad  at  her  populous  condition, 
like  a  barren  vjoman,  because  she  had  not  brought  forth  the 
crowds  which  peopled  her,  but  they  had  come  to  her  from  other 
cities  :  '  break  forth  into  singing  and  cry  aloud'  is  then  parallel 
to  '  shout,'  being  added  with  the  view  of  intensifying  the 
meaning.  For  more  are  the  children  of  tJie  desolate — the  chil- 
dren of  Samaria,  whose  kingdom  was  laid  desolate,  and  whose 
*  king  went  into  captivity,'  are  now  more  numerous  in  Jerusa- 
lem than  the  natives  of  the  capital.  The  children  of  the  married 
one  are  here  the  people  of  Jerusalem,  who  were  victorious  and 
in  tranquil  prosperity,  under  Hezekiah,  their  'just'  and  '  success- 
ful' king.  In  tliis  comparison,  the  people  or  city  is  likened  to 
a  woman,  and  its  king  to  her  husband,  while  the  nation  whose 
head  and  sovereignty  have  both  perished  is  likened  to  a  desolate 
widow.  In  the  succeeding  verses,  the  prophet  describes  the 
settling  of  the  rest  of  the  land ;  but  the  remaining  portions  of 
the  book  relate  mostly  to  the  third  Temple,  to  be  built  speedily 
in  our  own  days. 

Says  the  author  :  Behold,  we  have  explained  the  several  parts 
of  this  Parashah  in  an  elegant  and  plausible  manner ;  and  the 
interpretation  here  given  is  the  one  that  is  revealed  and  open  to 
all,  but  there  is  a  secret  one,  sealed  and  treasured  up  in  its 

°  Above,  p.  210. 


216  I?,  sa'adyah  iBN  danAn.  [liii.  12. 

midst,  which  sees  throughout  alhisions  to  the  King  Messiah 
(who  is  assuredly  to  be  speedily  revealed  in  our  own  da}s). 
And  in  the  same  sense  it  is  expounded  by  our  Rabbis  :  we 
cannot,  however,  interpret  each  individual  detail  in  it  of  the 
Messiah,  because  we  do  not  know  all  the  incidents  of  his 
advent,  or  the  precise  manner  of  the  redemption  which  he  will 
then  accomplish  for  Israel.  Still,  what  our  Rabbis  teach  in 
this  respect,  we  must  accept,  for,  like  all  their  other  opinions,  it 
will  be  true  and  right ;  but  any  one  who  imagines  himself  able 
to  apply  every  single  particular  in  the  Parashah  to  the  Messiah, 
is  in  error,  and  feeling  after  darkness  rather  than  light,  as  is  the 
case  with  the  heretics  who  struggle  vainly  to  refer  it  to  their 
Messiah  in  detail.  We  see  then  their  error  and  delusion,  which 
has  already  more  than  once  been  sufficiently  replied  to  by  our 
wise  men.  May  God,  for  his  name's  sake,  lighten  our  eyes  with 
the  illumination  of  liis  Law,  and  bring  us  forth  out  of  darkness 
into  light,  and  redeem  us  with  a  perfect  redemption  ! 


XXXII.     R.  SH^LOMOH    BEN    MELEKH. 


LII.  ^^  7''3tJ'*  tvill  prosper,  as  i  Sam.  xviii.  14,  and  as  the 
word  is  rendered  in  the  Targum  of  Yonathan.  ^^IDDti'  were 
astonished,  as  Ezek.  iii.  15.  nnti'O,  from  the  Hif'il,  with  Hireq 
in  phice  of  Qamez.  Or  it  may  be  an  adj.,  like  ^^'^'9,  Josh, 
xvi.  9,  Avith  Hireq  under  the  Mem.  HSh,  with  the  Holem 
retained,  contrary  to  custom,  on  account  of  the  N :  otherwise,  it 
ought  to  be  i"lj*n.  Cf.  vJJID,  Jer.  xxii.  13.  ^°nr;  used  here  in 
the  sense  of  speaking,  like  fjDJ,  which  similarly  bears  the  double 
meaning  of  dropping  or  sprinkling,  Judg.  v.  5,  and  also  of 
speaking,  as  Mic.  ii,  6.  The  word  is  Hifil,  with  a  transitive 
force,  fara  p)arlar  in  Spanish.  D''13 ;  the  Yod  of  the  plural  is 
dropped  in  writing,  but  preserved  in  pi'onunoiation.  1V2p^  to 
close  or  refrain ;  but  whether  the  word  be  interpreted  in  the 
sense  of  opening  (as  Cant.  ii.  8,  where  it  is  used  of  the  legs 
extended  in  leaping),  or  in  that  of  shutting  (as  Deut.  xv.  7), 
either  explanation  will  be  admissible  here :  the  kings  will  either 
open  their  mouth  to  tell  of  his  greatness,  or  close  it  by  placing 
their  hands  upon  it  in  amazement. 

LIU.  ^p3V,  as  Hos.  xiv.  7  :  young  and  tender  plants  are 
called  sucke7-s,  just  as  a  young  child  is  called  a  stickling. 
"imjonj")  and  ive  tvere  not  desiring  him,  but,  on  the  contrary, 
abominated  him  :  the  negative  must  be  supplied  from  HNID  vh. 
^7in,  an  adj.,  in  st.  constr. :  the  word  denotes  him  as  the  most 
insignificant  of  men.  yn^  known^:  the  sense  being  that  it  was 
known  to  all  as  an  established  fact  that  he  was  a  sufierer  from 


Not,  as  some  coinmcntatnrs  explain,  in  that  of  broken. 


218  R.  sh'lomoh  ben  melekh.  [liii.  4- 

sickness.  nriDO,  a  substantive.  inuaBTl  N^l,  the  verb  nieaus  to 
esteem:  we  did  not  in  the  least  appreciate  or  vahie  him.  ■'13"'pn, 
a  subst.,  with  the  Yod  of  the  phiral  dropped.  D?3D,  the  burden 
and  weight  of  the  pains  pressed  heavily  upon  his  shoulder. 
'"bbwo,  a  partcp.  of  the  quadrate  form  [Po'el],  from  a  verb  y^'y, 
signifying  ivounded;  or  possibly  from  a  vei'b  I'^j?,  in  the  sense 
of  panged,  of.  7^n,  Ps.  xlviii.  7,  etc.  X31D,  as  Ps.  cxliii.  3, 
IJJOvt^'  our  peace,  as  though  to  say,  The  chastisement  which 
should  have  come  upon  us  while  we  were  in  peace  fell  upon 
him.  But  E,.  Yoseph  Qamhi  explains  it  to  mean  tlie  wliole  of 
us,  like  D^DvC'  JlPJn,  Jer.  xiii.  19,  i.e.  a  whole  or  complete 
captivity ;  the  sense  will  then  be,  that  the  chastisements  which 
should  have  come  upon  us  fell  wholly  on  himl\  ini13n31,  like 
misn,  Ex.  xxi.  25,  except  that  the  Dagesh  is  omitted :  it  signifies 
a  slit  or  cut,  the  same  root  being  used  in  the  Jerusalem  Targum 
for  TTi^nn,  Deut.  xiv.  i.  From  the  language  of  our  Eabbis  it 
would  appear  that  a  stripe  or  wound  is  called  n">13n,  when  the 
blood  coagulates  underneath,  without  bi'eaking  out;  for  they 
say,  '  Wliat  is  a  ri~i"l2n  which  never  disap^jcars  %  It  is  a  bruise 
where  the  blood,  though  it  does  not  bi-eak  out  through  the  skin, 
nevertheless  coagulates  beneath  it.'  It  is  called  a  ninn,  because 
the  blood  is  collected  together  in  the  wound  itself  f.  We  were 
healed — in  the  same  sense  as  Ex.  xv.  26.  "jSV^  (with  Pathah); 
like  the  sheep,  viz.  the  sheep  which  are  without  a  shepherd : 
the  definite  article  is  therefore  inserted,  because  the  shce^D  which 
have  no  shepherd  are  those  which  go  astray,  yjsn,  it  is  the 
penalty  which  lights  upon  them,  and  God  who  causes  it  to  do 
so,  viz.  when  he  sends  misfortune  on  them:  jiy  means  here  the 
penalty  for  sin,  as  Gen.  xv.  16.  'tJ'JJ  to  oppress,  viz.  for  money, 
as  2  Kings  xxiii.  35,  Deut.  xv.  2.  n3y3  was  afflicted  in  the 
body — alluding  to  the  stripes  he    used   to   undergo.      nD?N3, 


''  Comp.  above,  p.  52. 

"  Above,  p.  109.    The  author's  words  agree  closely  with  those  of  Qamhi, 
Book  of  Roots,  s.  V.  maian. 


-liii.  10.]  R.  sh'lomoh  ben  melekh.  219 

Mil' el,  being  i>erf.  Nifal.  ^iViy,  the  place  where  he  was  con- 
fined, by  which  the  prophet  means  the  captivity.  US*^D,  i.  e. 
the  exile,  when  judgments  were  inflicted  upon  him :  from  all 
this  he  was  taken  and  redeemed.  '31  1"in  nsi  tvJio  was  there 
that  said  his  generation  would  ever  attain  such  greatness  1  cf. 
Gen.  xxi.  7.  umu^  is  to  tell  or  declare,  as  Ps.  cxliii.  7  :  in  both 
places  the  form  is  Po'lel,  from  nit:'.  3fy  people :  each  separate 
nation  is  supposed  to  say  this;  the  stroke  had  fallen  upon 
Israel,  not  for  theii*  own  transgi'ession,  but  for  that  of  the 
nations.  ^T'Cy,  considered  by  R.  Yonah  *^  to  be  equivalent  to 
yen  wicked;  but  it  is  not  allowable  to  abandon  the  usual  signi- 
fication 'rich,'  merely  on  account  of  the  parallel  clause.  The 
prophet  says  that  through  being  slain  because  there  was  '  no 
violence  in  his  hands,'  he  died  before  his  time,  like  the  wicked, 
who  (Ps.  Iv.  24)  'do  not  live  out  half  their  days,'  being  put  to 
death  for  their  wickedness.  In  the  same  way,  the  words  witJi 
the  rich  in  his  death  mean  that  he  perished  like  the  rich  who 
are  murdered  for  the  sake  of  their  wealth.  By  giving  his  grave 
with  the  ivicked  is  signified  that  he  gave  himself  up  to  mart}Tdom 
for  the  sake  of  God's  holy  name :  for  if  he  had  denied  his  own 
Law,  and  transferred  his  allegiance  to  theirs,  they  would  have 
released  him :  and  the  expression  xvith  the  rich  derives  its  force 
fi-om  the  fact  that  the  wealthy  are  murdered  for  their  riches, 
and  not  for  any  wickedness  that  may  be  in  them.  ITliD,  plural 
from  niO,  the  Waiv  becoming  quiescent:  the  plural  number 
indicates  how  death  was  sometimes  produced  by  repeated  stab- 
bings,  sometimes  by  severe  tortures;  in  time  of  persecution,  too, 
some  were  burnt,  others  murdered,  others  stoned:  they  were 
ready  to  meet  any  form  of  death  for  the  Unity  of  God.  '°  ''7nn, 
pronounced  like  a  verb  n"?,  with  the  third  radical  dropped  in 
A\Titing,  although  the  root  is  in  general  n"?.  ^ilN^  tvill  make 
others  prolong,  with  a  causative  signification,  for  their  long  life 
will  be  owing  to  him  and  his  obedience  to  the  commandments : 

^  Book  of  Soots,  col.  554  (sec  below,  Note  h). 


220  R.  sh'lomoh  ben  melekii.  [liii.  ii,i2. 

see  the  root.  "y3'^*^  HNi'',  i.  e.  lie  will  see  prosi)erity,  so  as  to  be 
satisfied  with  it.  myn  to  pour  out,  as  Gen.  xxiv.  20,  though  in 
a  diffei'ent  conjugation.  ^^JJ^JS''  to  intercede  or  entreat,  as  lix.  i6, 
Jer.  xxxvi.  25,  similarly  in  Hif'il.  The  meaning  is  that  Israel 
used  to  intercede  for  the  transgressions,  as  it  is  said  (Jer.  xxix.  7), 
'  And  seek  ye  the  peace  of  the  city  whither  I  have  led  you  away 
captives.' 


XXXIII.     R.  ABRAHAM   FARISSOL. 


Inasmuch  as  in  this  Parashah  there  seem  to  be  considerahlc 
resemblances  and  allusions  to  the  work  of  the  Christian  Messiah, 
and  to  the  events  which  are  asserted  to  have  happened  to  him, — 
how,  e.  g.,  he  came  and  bare  the  iniquity  of  the  Church, — so  that 
no  other  prophecy  is  to  be  found  the  gist  and  subject  of  which 
can  be  so  immediately  applied  to  him,  it  is  essential  that  we 
should  discuss  and  explain  it  with  care ;  thoroughly  and  clearly 
examining  each  separate  verse,  and  exhibiting  its  connexion 
with  the  rest,  in  order  that  'he  who  runs  may  read.'  In  the 
first  place,  then,  we  may  mention  that  this  Parashah  also  is 
divided  in  two  by  Hieronymus,  the  learned  Christian  translator, 
who  makes  a  division  in  the  course  of  the  Parashah,  separating 
the  first  three  verses  irom  what  follows,  and  commencing  the 
fifty-third  chapter  at  the  verse  Who  liath  believed  our  report  ? 
From  this  point  onwards,  through  the  whole  length  of  the 
Parashah,  Christian  commentators  explain  whatever  they  desire 
of  the  sufferings  specially  attributed  to  their  Messiah,  on  the 
ground  that  he  came  to  die,  and  to  carry  and  atone  for  the 
iniquity  of  the  Chui'ch.  For  our  own  part,  however,  we  shall 
start  at  the  proper  opening  of  the  Parashah,  Behold  my  servant, 
etc.,  endeavouring  first  of  all  to  elicit  the  intention  of  the 
prophet,  and  to  ascertain  who  the  '  servant '  is  to  whom  he 
appropriates  the  Parashah  :  by  this  method  we  may  hope  after- 
wards to  discover  the  drift  of  the  whole,  and  avoid  deducing 
from  it  any  idle  inferences. 

I  have  found,  then,  some  expositors  who  suppose  the  Parashah 


222  R,   ABRAHAM    FARISSOL.  [Hi,  liii. 

to  be  an  echo  of  the  murmur  of  dissatisfaction  expressed  by 
the  saying,  '  There  is  a  just  man  and  it  goes  ill  with  hima-.'  and 
others  who  apply  it  confidently  to  the  King  Messiah,  who  will 
be  equally  a  servant  of  God  and  the  Messiah — an  opinion  shared 
by  our  Rabbis  in  the  Midrash,  when  they  say,  alluding  to  his 
dignity  and  greatness,  '  He  shall  be  higher  than  Abraham,  more 
exalted  than  Moses,  and  loftier  than  the  ministering  angels.' 
We  shall  ourselves,  however,  with  no  less  confidence,  suppose 
that  it  refers  properly  to  the  congregation  of  Israel,  which  the 
prophet  addresses  bj'^  the  term  servant,  in  the  singular  number, 
exactly  as  we  find  him  doing,  by  habit  and  preference,  in  many 
of  his  previous  prophecies.  Thus  he  says  above,  'Remember 
these  things,  0  Jacob,  and  Israel ;  for  thou  art  my  servant :  I 
have  fashioned  thee,  thou  art  my  servant' — language  which 
shews,  beyond  the  possibility  of  doubt,  both  that  the  prophet  is 
addressing  the  congregation  of  Israel,  and  that  he  applies  to  it 
the  name  of  servant:  the  verse  so  adapted  to  establish  this 
occurs  in  the  forty-fourth  chapter  of  Isaiah  [ver.  21].  In 
addition,  howevei',  to  this  passage,  which  has  been  shewn  to  be 
so  important  for  proving  that  Israel  is  spoken  of  by  the  par- 
ticular and  individual  term  servant,  many  others  can  also  be 
found,  likewise  preceding  the  Parashah  at  present  imder  dis- 
cussion, in  which,  adopting  the  same  standpoint,  he  adopts 
naturally  the  same  appellation.  For  instance,  '  But  thou  Israel 
art  my  servant'  (xli,  8);  'Now,  therefore,  hear,  Jacob  my  servant' 
(xliv.  i);  and  a  little  below  the  verse  just  quoted  (ver.  21),  'I 
have  formed  thee,  thou  art  a  servant  to  me,  0  Israel,  thou  shalt 
not  be  forgotten  by  me  :  I  wipe  out  as  a  cloud  thy  trans- 
gi-essions,'  etc.  (by  which  he  means  to  say  that  the  iniquities 
of  the  congregation  will  be  pardoned)  ;  and  immediately 
afterwards  (ver.  23),  Tor  the  Lord  hath  redeemed  Jacob.' 
Under  these  circumstances,  it  having  become  clear  from  the 
prophet's  own  words  that  the  subject  of   the  Parashah  is  the 

»  Above,  page  15. 


Hi.  13-liii.  I.]  U.  ABRAHAM    FARISSOL.  223 

congregation  of  Israel,  we  are  necessarily  bound  to  interpret  it 
accordingly,  in  agreement  with  what  was  his  real  design.  And 
so,  when  at  the  end  he  says,  My  servant  shall  justify  many,  we 
must  not  force  ourselves  to  the  belief  that  a  different  subject  is 
referred  to.  Whatever  justice  thei-e  may  be  in  the  expressions 
of  our  wise  men  who  applied  the  prophecy  to  the  Messiah,  it 
should  be  borne  iii  miud  that  although  they  themselves  and 
their  words  are  both  truthful  alike,  still  their  object  was  an 
allegorical  one.  But  for  ourselves  we  shall  explain  it  wholly 
of  Israel,  who  is  called  a  servant,  because  their  distress  and  the 
length  of  theii"  captivity  are  the  subject  of  complaint :  we  shall 
also  discover  in  it  the  language  of  the  Gentiles  after  the  re- 
demption has  arrived,  when  they  will  begin  to  express  the 
utmost  amazement  at  the  pains  and  calamities  we  had  pre- 
viously endured,  saying  that  they,  rather  than  Israel,  ought  to 
have  undergone  such  penalties  and  punishments  as  those.  In 
tliis  way  we  shall  succeed  in  avoiding  a  long  exposition. 

LII.  "  The  prophet,  speaking  in  the  name  of  God,  says.  Behold 
ony  servant,  i.e.  my  servant  Jacob  and  the  congregation  of  Israel, 
shall  jprosper  :  he  shall  he  hiyh  and  lifted  up,  viz.  in  the  future 
exaltation.  "  As  many  peoples  and  kings  were  astonished  at 
thee,  O  congregation  of  Israel,  and  amazed  that  the  countenance 
of  God's  servant  should  be  marred  beyond  man,  and  his  form 
beyond  the  sons  of  men,  saying  in  contempt,  as  they  still  do 
continually,  when  they  see  a  Hebrew,  '  He  has  the  face  of  a 
Jew  ! '  ^^  so  the  time  will  come  when  many  nations  will  speak 
of  him — nr  being  Hifil  and  applied  to  speaJcing,  like  5]''Dn, 
Mic.  ii.  II — and  kings  express  amazement  with  their  lips  at  the 
mighty  salvation  vouchsafed  to  him ;  for  that  ivhich  had  not  been 
told  them — how,  namely,  such  good  fortune  would  one  day 
really  be  theirs — they  now  Jiave  seen,  and  that  which  they  had 
not  heard  they  have  j)erceived,  for  the  Gentiles  and  their  kings 
have  never  heard  or  imagined,  neither  do  they  believe,  that 
Israel  will  ever  be  saved. 

LIII.  '  The  Gentiles  and  kings  now  say.  Who  hath  believed 


224  R.  ABRAHAM    FARISSOL.  [liii.  2- 

this  report  which  we  hear  ?  audi  upon  whom  hath  the  arm  of  tJie 
Lord  been  revealed?  upon  this  servant,  who  before  was  despised, 
disjiersed,  and  rejected,  ^  but  now  grows  up  in  prosperity,  like  a 
root  springing  up  in  exile  to  '  produce  fruit  upwards,'  although 
before  he  had  'neither  form  nor  comeliness,  nor  the  exquisite 
beauty  of  a  man  tlud  we  should  desire  him.  ^  He  was  in  truth 
despised  and  forlorn  of  men,  exposed  to  accidents  and  sickness  : 
in  his  depression  he  kept  his  face  unceasingly  hidden  from  us ; 
he  was  despised  and  we  accounted  him  for  nought.  All  this  is 
supposed  to  be  spoken  by  the  Gentiles :  *  then,  when  they  see  the 
salvation  of  Israel,  and  their  peace  budding  forth,  they  continue. 
Surely  he  hath  carried  our  sicknesses,  etc.,  i.e.  now  of  a  certainty 
we  perceive  that  this  servant  Israel  has  suffered  the  punishment 
for  iniquity  which  ought  to  have  been  carried  by  us,  and  borne 
the  2'xiin  which  for  our  deeds  we  ought  to  have  endured :  yet 
we,  while  he  was  in  exile  in  our  midst,  thought  that  all  his 
calamities  and  sufferings  were  occasioned  by  his  being  stricken, 
smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted  with  troubles  proceeding  from  the 
Lord  out  of  heaven.  ^But  he — the  nations  are  still  speaking,  as 
in  the  preceding  verse — was  made  sick  and  punished  in  our 
stead :  the  correction  of  our  peace,  i.  e.  the  sentence  of  peace 
obtained  by  us,  should  properly  have  rested  upon  him — he 
ought  to  have  continued  in  peace  and  happiness  ratlier  than 
we ;  but  now,  since  he  bore  the  punishment,  although  unjustly, 
tve  are  healed,  and  escape  the  rev/ard  of  our  iniquities.  For, 
since  it  is  clear  from  their  having  attained  such  prosperity,  that, 
in  spite  of  their  sufferings,  they  were  nevertheless  right  in  their 
beliefs,  we  perceive  that  we,  and  not  Israel,  were  the  guilty:  that 
we  transgi-csscd  and  were  rebellious  in  the  subjection  wherewith 
Ave  subjected  them,  although  we  still  received  no  retribution  at 
their  hands.  Of  a  truth,  they  will  then  continue,  all  we  like 
sheep  have  gone  astray  in  our  false  oi)inions  concerning  him ;  as 
Jeremiah  says  (xvi.  19),  'To  thee  will  come  nations  from  the 
ends  of  the  earth,  and  say,  Our  Withers  have  inherited  nothing 
but  vanity :'  but  tlie  Lord  laid  upon  him  the  iniquity  of  iis  all — 


-liii.  8.]  lu  \ni!Aii.\M   KAnissoL.  225 

brought  on  the  'pervant'  (as  implied  above,  in  the  words, 
Surely  he  luith  earried  our  sicknesses)  riie  i)enalty  and  retribu- 
tion which  we  ought  to  have  paid.  '  ^'The  [Christian]  translator 
has  rendered  this  verse  as  though  it  were  an  exposition  of  the 
ideas  held  by  Christians,  applying  it  to  the  atoning  death  of 
their  Messiah  ;  for  ourselves,  however,  we  explain  D'33  from 
Ex.  V.  13,  and  suppose  the  nations  to  be  describing  l>  how  the 
'servant'  is  opjn-essed  and  crushed  by  adversity  to:ether  with 
themselves,  and  also  at  the  same  time  hoiced  dotvn  beneath 
the  yoke  of  atftiction,  calumny,  and  persecution  that  was  laid 
upon  them  (the  nations),  unable,  for  the  terror  they  caused  him, 
to  open  his  7nouth,  and  resembling  rather  a  sheejy  led  to  the 
sJaiighter.  ^At  this  juncture,  when  they  see  bis  final  exaltation, 
they  will  say,  From  the  confinement  of  captivity,  and  the  judg- 
ment of  I'etriljution  which  he  endured,  he  has  been  taken  away,  to 
come  forth  into  the  light ;  and  who  would  ever  have  told  the  men 
of  his  generation  that  he  would  be  delivered  from  all  the  troubles 
which  surrounded  him  %  for,  so  they  thought,  he  is  cut  off  out  of 
the  land  of  life — he  will  not  be  counted  worthy  of  the  happiness 
reserved  for  the  world  to  come :  for  the  transgression  of  my 
jjeople,  says  each  of  the  kings,  and  for  their  sins,  tJiere  is  a 
stroke  upon  him,  viz.  upon  the  'servant'  who  is  all  along  spoken 
of,  fas  in  ver.  5,  '  He  was  wounded  for  our  transgressions'^^.'  107 
will  then  be  equivalent  to  17,  as  Ps.  Iv.  20,  and  often.  Other- 
wise, however,  we  may  explain  as  follows  :  For  tlieir  trans- 
gression in  injuring  the  congregation  of  Israel,  there  is  a  stroke 
for  them — the  children  of  my  people  will  receive  retribution, 
and  a  stroke  will  fall  upon  them  from  heaven,  as  it  fell  on 
Pharaoh  (Gen.  xii.  17).     d  Jn  this  case  the  Avord  )U?  will  retain 

*•  la  B  : — The  translator  llieronymus  alters  here  the  meaning  of  the 
words  :  the  general  sense,  however,  remains  almost  the  same ;  for  there  are 
copies  in  which  the  C  is  pointed  on  the  left  (c),  so  that  c;:  must  be  explained 
from  Ex.  v.  13,  the  prophet  describing,  etc.  [Jerome's  version  is,  Ohlatm  est 
quia  i2^se  volait,  etc.] 

e  Only  in  A.  <>  Only  in  B. 

Q 


226  R.  ABRAHAM    FARISSOL.  [liii.  9- 

its  regular  plural  force,  being  equivalent  to  Dn?.  Or  ID?  them, 
may  refer  back  to  Israel,  according  to  the  sense  of  ver.  4, 
'  He  carried  our  sicknesses*!.'  ^As,  above,  the  nations  are  repre- 
sented as  supposing  him  to  have  been  '  cut  off  from  the  laud 
of  life,'  so  here  they  are  represented  as  supposing  beforehand 
that  he  always  made  his  grave  toith  the  wicked,  ''so  that  his  final 
reward  would  be  '  in  the  underworld  beneath' — the  grave  of  the 
wicked  being  preparatory  to  the  retribution  and  punishments  of 
Gehenna  :  now,  however,  they  perceive  their  supposition  to  have 
been  false,  because^  he  did  no  violence,  and  there  was  no  deceit  in 
his  mouth.  ^"At  this  point  the  truth  is  stated  in  the  prophet's 
own  words  :  The  Lord  tvas  pleased  to  bruise  and  sicken  him, 
so  as  to  see  whether  he  would  make  his  soul  a  trespass-offering — 
in  other  words,  whether  the  '  servant'  would  justify  the  judg- 
ment passed  upon  him,  in  order  that  he  might  be  worthy  to 
see  seed,  i.  e.  to  see  his  childi-eu  live  long,  even  in  exile,  and 
lengthen  days,  without  being  cut  off  for  ever  iii  captivity,  a^id 
that  at  last  tlie  Lord's  2)leasii;re,  his  holy  Law,  might  prosper  in 
his  hand.  ^^  For  the  travail  which  his  soul  had  experienced 
in  exile,  he  toill  now  see  happiness  and  be  satisfied  with  his 
prosperity  and  the  knowledge  in  which  he  will  grow  great  and 
wise,  multiplying  understanding,  as  it  is  said,  'The  earth  shall 
be  filled  with  the  knowledge  of  the  Lord,'  so  will  my  servant 
(the  same  servant  mentioned  above)  make  many  r-ighteoiis,  for 
their  iniquities  did  he  bear.  The  last  words  shew  that  this 
happiness  will  come  to  him  as  an  equivalent  for  the  penalties  he 
had  endured  in  place  of  the  Gentiles  :  cf.  ver.  4,  '  Our  sicknesses 
he  hath  carried.'  ^'^  Tlierefore,  says  the  prophet  in  the  name 
of  God,  because  of  the  calamities  he  has  endured,  ^  I  will  divide 

»  In  B  :  i.  e.  that  he  had  to  endure  the  penalty  and  reward  of  the  wicked  ; 
and,  moreover,  was  vnth  the  rich  in  hix  death,  i.e.  that  the  portion  of  his 
soul  would  then  be  like  that  allotted  to  wealthy  robbers  :  this  opinion  concern- 
ing him  was  false  heca  ^t,se,  etc. 

'  In  B  simply  :  I  will  divide  him  spoil  and  plunder  with  many,  even  with 
great  and  mighty  kings  ;  and  this  shall  be  the  portion  of  the  '  servant.' 


-liii,  12.]  Tl.  ABRAHAM    FARISSOL.  227 

him  the  spoil  of  Gog  und  Magog,  together  loith  many  mighty 
kings:  and  this  will  be  accomplished  for  him  in  the  latter  days^, 
because  he  foured  out  his  soul  to  die,  and  received  chastise- 
ments 8of  loves,  and  moreover  was  numbered  by  the  Gentiles 
amongst  the  transgressors  and  the  wicked,  and  carried  the  sin  of 
many  (as  is  said  above)  and  interceded  for  the  transgressors  ; 
for  not  only  did  the  congregation  of  Israel  bear  the  retribution 
which  properly  and  rightly  should  have  fallen  upon  others, 
who  had  ill-used  them  and  kept  them  in  subjection,  but  they 
were  in  the  habit  of  praying  for  the  good  estate  of  the  king- 
dom ^^  and  of  the  very  transgressors  who  ill-treated  them,  and 
for  the  prosperity  and  richness  of  the  crops,  after  the  manner 
of  the  general  prayers  which  we  still  use  daily  in  captivity.  Or 
the  meaning  of  the  last  words  may  be  this,  that  i  in  the  days 
of  the  redemption',  they  will  intercede  for  the  transgi-essors  J 
in  order  that  they  may  '^be  healed,  and  forgiven,  and^^  be 
converted.  Such,  then.  Us  the  right  method  of  exposition  to 
pursue  in  the  present  Parashah,  to  pay,  namely,  close  attention 
throughout  to  the  prophet's  meaning,  for  the  purpose  of  ascer- 
taining who  is  the  '  servant'  that  will  instruct  them  :  the  servant 
is  the  nation,  suffering  and  smitten  ^  for  their  sins  more  than 
any  other  people,  by  whose  stripes  and  blows  it  appears  "^  clearly™ 
that  the  Gentiles  will  all  be  healed,  and  escape  altogether  the 
penalty  which  their  rebellion  deserves.  And  so  they  say  of  the 
Mahometans,  the  whole  tribe  of  Arabs  and  Turks,  that  they  will 
never  receive  any  penalty  for  their  rebellion,  but  will  always 
dwell  °  securely  in  the  world,  enjoying  every  blessing  from  the  host 
of  heaven  n.  Hence  also  it  becomes  plain  that  Israel  alone  was 
destined  for  punishment — possibly  because  through  their  being 

e  Only  in  A.  ^  Ahhoth,  iii.  2.  '  after  the  captivity,  A. 

J  B  adds,  who  ill-used  them.  •■  Only  in  A. 

1  is  the  preferable  view.     At  that  time,  too,  the  nations  will  be  amazed  at 
the  blow  of  exile  and  the  other  calamities  which  perpetually  befel  Israel,  B. 
•"  even  at  the  present  day,  B. 

°  peacefully,  with  '  no  breaking  in,  and  no  complaining  in  their  streets,'  B. 

Q  2 


228  R.  ABRAHAM    FARISSOL.  [liii.  I2. 

smitten  others  are  to  be  healed.  This  exposition  has  already 
been  hinted  at  by  tlie  authors  of  our  traditions,  as  also  in  the 
learned  Cuzario,  who  explaia  that  it  is  a  natural  and  regular 
ordinance  of  God  for  the  most  precious,  the  most  indispensable, 
and  the  most  active  member  of  the  body  to  be  smitten  and 
require  curing :  and  hence  that  in  any  complaint,  Pthe  most 
vital  parts,  and,  in  particular,  the  liver  (which  is  the  fountain  of 
a  man's  life  blood),  suffer?  most  quickly  and  most  severely,  and 
must  therefore  be  bled  and  purged,  in  order  that  the  other 
members  may  be  healed.  Whoever,  then,  understands  in  what 
way  Israel,  the  '  people  near  unto  Him,'  is  the  heart  of  the  whole 
world,  and  Israel's  territory  the  fountain  of  all  lands  (because 
from  its  sufficiency  the  whole  world  drinks),  will  also  understand 
this,  and  perceive  how  hy  their  stripes  all  besides  were  Jiealed. 
We  have  already  explained  above  the  principal  reason  why 
Israel  suffered  more  than  other  nations,  viz.  because  they 
had  received  the  commandment,  and  because,  in  fact,  they 
existed  for  the  purpose  of  obeying  the  Law — a  law,  which 
was  given  to  us,  and  not  to  any  other  nation ;  as  it  is  written, 
'An  inheritance  to  the  congregation  of  Jacob'  (Deut.  xxxiii.  4) ; 
and,  'Who  declareth  his  words  unto  Jacob'  (Ps.  cxlvii.  19). 
Hence  for  their  perverseness  they  were  punished  beyond  any 
other  people  who  had  not  received  any  such  law  :  and  accord- 
ingly Amos  says, '  You  only  have  I  known  out  of  all  the  families 
of  the  earth;  therefore  I  will  visit  upon  you  all  your  iniquities' 
(Amos  iii.  2). — May  the  Lord  purify  us  and  save  us  ! 

°  Yehudah  ha-Levi,  Cuzari,  ii.  36. 

p  In  B  :  the  great  monarch,  the  heart,  suffers. 


XXXIV. 

You  already  know  that  the  majority  of  commentators, 
Rashi,  R.  Abraham  'Ibn  'Ezra,  R.  David  Qamhi,  and  Abarbanel, 
agree  in  holding  that  this  prophecy  refers  to  the  Israelitish 
nation.  The  same  opinion  commends  itself  also  to  me,  since  in 
many  of  Isaiah's  other  prophecies  we  have  observed  likemse  how 
the  people  are  designated  by  the  term  my  servant,  as  xli.  8,  9, 
xUv.  21,  and  often  besides:  in  Leviticus,  also,  God  exclaims 
(xxv.  55),  'For  unto  me  are  the  childi'en  of  Israel  servants' 
It  follows,  then,  that  the  '  servant  of  the  Lord,'  when  used  abso- 
lutely, must  signify  Jacob  and  his  children,  the  peculiar  people. 
And  do  not  object  to  me  on  the  gi'ound  that  our  wise  men  have 
expounded  the  prophecy  of  the  King  Messiah  (as  we  find  it  said, 
He  shall  be  higher  than  Abraham,  more  exalted  than  Moses,  and 
loftier  than  the  ministering  angels) ;  because  our  belief  is  that 
the  King  Messiah  is  flesh  and  blood,  even  one  of  the  righteous 
kings  of  Israel,  as  R,  Mosheh  Maimuni  [Maimonides]  writes ^  in 
the  part  MHdkhim,  '  From  the  greatness  of  the  king  may 
be  inferred  the  greatness  of  the  nation,  exactly  as  from  the 
greatness  of  the  nation  can  be  understood  the  greatness  of 
the  king : '  hence  the  promises  uttered  respecting  the  King 
Messiah  belong  also  to  Israel,  just  as  those  which  have  reference 
to  Israel  have  reference  to  the  Messiah  likewise.     Nor  did  our 

*  Tad  ha-h^zaqah,  §  M'ldLhim,  c.  xi. 


230  XXXI V.  [Hi.  1.^- 

Kabbis  intend  by  their  Midrash  to  imply  that  he  would  be 
greater  than  Moses  and  the  angels  :  there  is  no  need  to  suppose 
that  the  Mem  must  denote  superiority  or  comparison  ;  it  may  in 
this  place  signify /row,  as  i  Chrou.  xxix.  1 4.  Their  meaning  would 
thus  be  that  his  princely  nature  would  owe  its  origin  to  his 
being  of  the  seed  of  our  father  Abraham,  his  power  of  prophecy 
to  his  being  a  disciple  of  Moses  our  master,  the  permanency  of 
his  law  and  the  penetration  of  his  intellect  to  the  angels  being 
amongst  the  members  of  his  household. 

LII.  ^^The  prophet  says  that  the  nation  h'^yi^.  Thig  word  we 
find  used  both  of '  understanding,'  as  in  Isaiah  himself,  xli.  20, 
and  also  of  '  prosj)erity '  or  '  success,'  as  i  Sam.  xviii.  14.  In  the 
present  place  you  can  interpret  it  in  whichever  way  you  prefer  ; 
since  we  find  both  promised  to  the  nation  in  different  passages  : 
Jeremiah,  for  instance  (xxxi.  33),  says,  'All  of  them  shall  know 
me  ;'  and  Isaiah  (xlviii.  15),  'He  shall  make  his  way  prosperous.' 
Shall  he  hhjh :  this  word  is  used  of  victory  over  enemies,  as 
Mic.  V.  8  :  accordingly  it  is  here  promised  that  the  nation  shall 
be  high  above  its  enemies  and  shall  subdue  them.  And  exalted : 
the  good  name  that  travelleth  afar  is  thus  designated  :  Scripture, 
for  instance,  says  of  Hezekiah  (2  Chron.  xxxii.  23),  that  'he  was 
exalted  in  the  eyes  of  all  the  earth;'  and  in  the  same  way  the 
prophet  here  promises  that  the  nation  will  be  exalted  in  the 
eyes  of  every  one,  and  that  its  name  will  go  forth  into  all  the 
world  :  the  same  promise  occurs  often  besides,  as  Jer.  xvi.  19. 
And  lofty  exceedingly :  the  man  who  does  not  turn  to  the 
vanities  of  this  world,  but  fixes  the  desire  of  his  soul  wholly 
on  intellectual  studies,  and  directs  his  intelligence  ujiwards 
is  said  to  be  lofty :  thus  Sci-ipture  says  of  Jehoshaphat, 
king  of  Judah  (2  Chron.  xvii.  3-6),  how  'the  Lord  was  with 
him,'  etc.,  and  'his  heart  was  lofty  in  the  ways  of  the  Lord  ;'  and 
so  it  is  promised  here  that  Israel  will  not  '  turn  towards  the 
proud,  and  such  as  incline  after  lying'  (Ps.  xl.  5),  but  will  ele- 
vate his  intelligence  upwards  so  as  to  gain  understanding  and 
knowledge  of  the  ways  of  the  Lord.     "Isaiah  says  that  at  the 


-liii.  I.]  XXXIV.  231 

time  of  the  captivity  all  who  saw  them  were  astoniahed  and 
confounded  at  their  fall;  so  it  is  written  (2  Chron.  xxix.  8), 
'  And  the  Lord's  anger  was  upon  Judah  and  Jerusalem,  and  he 
delivered  them  to  trouble,  astonishment,  and  hissing,'  in  accord- 
ance with  the  prediction  delivered  by  Moses  (Deut.  xxviii.  37), 
*  And  thou  shalt  become  an  astonishment,  a  proverb,  and  a 
by-word,'  etc.  And  this  astonishment,  he  goes  on,  arose  from 
i\\e\.Y  form  being  marred,  in  the  words  of  the  Mourner  (Lam. 
iv.  8),  'Their  form  is  become  darker  than  the  Nile,  they  are  not 
known  in  the  streets.'  ^'^The  verb  HTn,  analogously  to  i'B'j,  is 
used  of  anything  moved  forcibly  and  irregularly  from  place 
to  place  :  thus,  Is.  Ixiii.  3,  'And  the  juice  of  them  ivas  shaken 
upon  my  garments  ; '  2  Kings  ix.  33,  'And  some  of  her  blood  was 
shaken  upon  the  wall;'  7^2  occurs  in  a  similar  signification, 
Deut.  xix.  5,  2  Kings  xvi.  6.  Here  the  prophet  says  that  as 
during  the  exile  men  had  been  astonished  at  Israel,  so  now  their 
greatness,  extending  as  it  does  from  one  end  of  the  earth  to  the 
other,  will  expel  many  nations  from  the  places  of  their  abode. 
It  is  possible  that  this  term  nfn,  which  is  most  frequently 
applied  to  blood,  is  chosen  with  the  view  of  indicating  that  the 
expulsion  will  be  attended  with  bloodshed.  At  him  kings  will 
shut  their  mouth :  when  they  hear  of  Israel's  greatness,  the 
kings  of  the  earth  (as  Micah  says,  vii.  16)  'will  be  confounded 
and  put  their  hand  upon  their  mouth.'  For  that  v:hich  was  not 
told  them,  etc. :  the  prophet  himself  says  (Ixvi.  8),  '  Who  hath 
heard  such  a  thing  as  this  ?  who  hath  seen  things  like  these  ? ' 
on  account  of  all  these  things  they  will  shut  their  mouths — they 
will  have  no  mouth  to  speak  with,  after  seeing  what  they  had 
never,  during  their  whole  lives,  imagined  that  they  would 
behold. 

LIII.  ^  Then  they  will  each  say  to  himself,  Who  ever  believed  that 
we  should  hear  a  report  such  as  we  are  hearing  now  ?  So  Habak- 
kuk  says  (i.  5),  'Behold  among  the  Gentiles,  and  regard,  and 
wonder  marvellously  :  for  I  woi'k  a  work  in  your  days,  which  ye 
will  not  believe,  though  it  be  told  you.'     And  this  amazement 


232  XXXIV.  [liii.  2- 

will  be  increased  amongst  them  when  they  perceive  how  the 
arm  and  might  of  the  Lord  7uid  been  revealed  to  *  a  people 
despised  and  jjlundered,'  as  Isaiah  himself  declares  (xlix.  7)  had 
been  the  case  with  Israel  hitherto.  "  For  wonderful  to  tell,  he 
had  suddenly  begun  to  flourish  like  a  sucker,  i.  e.  like  a  twig 
from  a  tree  planted  in  the  earth,  and  like  a  root  out  of  the  dry 
earth,  i.  e.  like  the  root  which  remains  concealed  in  the  ground 
when  the  tree  is  pulled  up,  so  that  the  passers-by  cannot  see  it, 
ind  do  not  suppose  it  to  be  tliere,- though  presently  it  puts 
orth  its  shoots  and  becomes  a  great  tree  :  such  will  be  the 
/anguage  used  of  Israel,  when,  after  having  been  long  dried  up, 
it  has  again  produced  fruit  upwards.  You  find  Hosea  speaking 
similarly  (xiv.  6),  'I  will  be  as  the  dew  unto  Israel  :  let  him 
flourish  as  the  lily,  and  cast  forth  his  roots  as  Lebanon !  let  his 
suckers  spread,  and  his  beauty  be  as  the  olive  !'  Ue  had  no  form 
and  no  comeliness  :  these  words  allude  peihaps  to  the  wise  men 
of  Israel  and  the  Sanhedrin ;  for  the  gloi-y  of  a  nation  consists 
in  its  wise  men.  Our  Rabbis  have  this  Midrash :  While  a 
righteous  man  is  in  a  city,  he  is  its  glory,  its  ornament,  and  its 
splendour :  when  he  leaves  it,  its  glory  leaves  it,  its  ornament 
leaves  it,  its  splendour  leaves  it^;  and  so  you  find  that  when 
Israel  was  carried  captive  fi'om  their  land,  the  Mourner  says 
(Lam.  i.  6),  '  Fi'om  the  daughter  of  Zion  all  her  splendour  is 
departed,'  where  our  Rabbis  say.  This  refers  to  the  Sanhedrin, 
which  went  into  captivity^'.  And  we  satv  him,  but  there  were 
no  looks  [to  gaze  at].  These,  too,  are  the  woi'ds  of  the  Grentiles 
and  their  kings,  saying  that  '  during  the  exile  we  did  not  gaze  at 
him,  because  he  was  de8j)ised  in  our  eyes :  now,  however,  we 
desire  him,  and  long  to  be  as  he  is.'  So  Balaam  says  (Num. 
xxiii.  10),  'May  my  last  end  be  like  his  !'  and  the  Psalmist 
(Ps.  cxii.  10),  'The  wicked  shall  see,  and  be  vexed:  his  teeth 
he  will  gnash  and  melt  away :  the  desire  of  the  wicked  shall 
perish,' — for  this  Psalm  relates  to  the  heathen  who  are  devoted 

^  B'reshith  Rahha,  §  68.  <;  Ekha,  i.  6. 


-liii.  ^.]  XXXIV.  233 

to  idolatry,  describing  iiow  tlio  wicked  at  the  time  of  the  redemp- 
tion will  be  so  vexed  when  he  sees  tlie  successes  of  this  nation 
that  he  will  gnash  his  teeth  at  finding  himself  unable  to  arrive  at 
prosperity  like  theirs.  And  Haggai  says  (ii.  7),  *  To  the  desire  of 
all  nations  shall  they  come,'  meaning  that  Israel  will  advance 
to  such  a  jjosition  that  all  nations  will  desire  to  be  like  them ; 
[but  in  vain,]  for  their  hopes  will  perish,  and  they  will  not 
be  able  to  overtake  them.  ^  He  ivas  desjnsed :  the  nations  will 
declare  how  hitherto  Israel  had  been  despised  and  depressed, 
as  the  prophet  himself  states  above,  xlix.  7 ;  so  Nehemiah  (ii. 
1 9)  relates  that  they  were  '  mocked  and  despised '  when  they 
began  to  build  the  walls  of  Jerusalem.  A  man  of  pains :  Isaiah 
describes  how  the  nation  was  incessantly  in  a  state  of  pain,  as 
the  Mourner  complains,  when  he  asks,  '  Is  there  any  pain  like 
unto  my  pain]'  (Lam.  i.  12.)  And,  similarly,  Jeremiah  says 
{xv.  18),  '  Why  is  my  pain  perpetual  and  my  plague  incurable  V 
and  again  (xxx.  15),  '  Thy  pain  is  incurable.'  And  known  to 
sickness :  they  were  exposed  to  every  description  of  malady, 
as  Scripture  predicts  (Deut.  xxviii.  59,  61),  '  Every  plague  and 
every  sickness,  and  sicknesses  sore  and  of  long  continuance,  will 
he  bring  upon  thee;'  and,  similarly,  Isaiah  (i.  5),  'The  whole 
head  is  sick;'  and  Jeremiah  (iv.  31),  'I  hear  a  voice  as  of  a 
woman  in  sickness,  and  anguish  as  of  her  that  bringeth  forth 
her  firstborn.'  131DD  D'J3  "inDD31 ;  the  commentators  explain 
this  as  signifying  that  the  Gentiles  hid  their  faces  from  Israel : 
perhaps,  however,  the  meaning  is  rather  that  they  imagined  the 
Almighty  had  hidden  his  face  from  them  ;  for  is  not  the  expres- 
sion 'as  though  hiding'  an  objection  to  the  former  view,  which 
would  require  simply  '  hiding .? '  The  fact  is  that  the  prophet 
adds  as  though,  because  he  speaks  of  the  Almighty's  hiding  his 
face,  wdiich  can  be  true  only  metaphorically.  In  similar  terms 
the  Mourner  (iv.  15  f.)  exclaims,  'They  say  amongst  the  heathen, 
no  longer  will  they  dwell  in  the  presence  of  the  Lord ;  he  hath 
divided  them,  he  will  no  more  regard  them.'  ^The  Gentiles 
continue   speaking.     Israel,  they   say,  has   done   excellently   in 


234  XXXIV,  [liii.  5- 

accepting  the  chastisements  which  we  laid  upon  them  and  which 
they  bore  —  for  '  our  sicknesses '  does  not  denote  the  sicknesses 
borne  by  the  nations,  but  the  sicknesses  which  they  inflicted 
upon  others  :  the  pronoun  sometimes  indicates  the  agent,  as 
'  my  blows'  (Ex.  ix.  14),  and  'my  bruise'  (Gen.  iv.  23),  where 
the  agents  are  God  and  Lamech  respectively.  In  the  same  way 
the  Psalmist  says  (xxxix.  11),  'Remove  thy  stroke  fi'om  off  me/ 
meaning  the  stroke  which  thou  hast  brought  upon  me ;  and 
so  here  the  nations  are  the  agents,  and  declare  how  Israel  bore 
the  sicknesses  which  they  themselves  had  occasioned.  So  Jere- 
miah says  (x.  19),  'Woe  is  me  for  my  hurt!  Truly  this  is 
my  sickness,  and  I  must  bear  it;'  and  the  Psalmist  (Ixix.  8), 
'  For  thy  sake  I  have  carried  reproach,  shame  hath  covered 
my  face.'  Yet  ive,  they  continue,  thought  that  the  calamities 
which  befel  him  in  exile  at  our  hands  [were  sent  of  God<l],  for 
seeing  him  stricken,  we  conceived  him  as  being  without  hope : 
so  the  Psalmist  says  (Ixxxviii.  5),  '  I  am  esteemed  as  those  that 
go  down  into  the  pit ; '  and  again,  speaking  in  the  name  of  the 
nation  (cxl.  2),  '  Deliver  me,  0  Lord,  fi'om  the  evil  man,  from 
the  man  of  violence  preserve  me,  who  imagine  mischief  in  their 
heart.'  ^  For  our  transgressions.  The  word  transgression  is 
used,  as  by  Jacob,  Gen.  xxxi.  36,  or  Joseph's  brethren,  1.  17, 
of  a  trespass  or  offence  committed  by  one  man  against  another : 
the  Gentiles  therefore  say.  We  now  recognise  that  he  was 
wounded  by  us ;  for  though  we  did  not  suspect  it  before,  in 
wounding  him  we  '  transgressed  and  rebelled.'  And  so  Jeremiah 
says  (1.  7),  'All  that  found  them  have  devoured  them:  and 
their  adversaries  say.  We  are  not  guilty,  because  they  have 
sinned  against  the  Lord.'  It  is  well  known  also  how  many 
our  sufferings  in  exile  were  :  the  Psalmist  says  (Ixix.  27), 
'  Him  whom  thou  hast  smitten  they  persecute,  and  tell  the  pain 
of  those  whom  thou  hast  wounded.'  Bruised  for  our  iniquities  ; 
for  if  we  bruised  him,  then  iniquity  came  upon  us:  the  Psalmist 

'  Some  such  words  as  these  seem  to  have  dropped  out  in  the  Hebrew. 


-liii.  7.]  xxxiv.  235 

says,  'Tliou  hast  bruised  us  in  the  place  of  dragons'  (xUv.  20) ; 
and, '  They  bruise  thy  people,  0  Lord,  and  afflict  thine  heritage' 
(xciv.  5).  And  tlie  chastisement  of  our  peace,  continue  the 
nations,  meaning  the  chastisement  they  had  inflicted  upon  Israel, 
was  ^lpo1^  him;  i.e.  Israel  prayed  for  our  peace,  in  order  that  we 
might  be  healed,  since  we  were  not  ourselves  worthy  to  enjoy  it 
except  through  the  intervention  of  the  miseries  which  befel  him, 
and,  by  so  doing,  produced  all  our  present  prosperity.  For 
while  they  were  in  exile,  the  Israelites  used  to  pray  for  us, 
as  they  were  commanded  to  do  by  the  prophets  :  this  Jeremiah 
says  (xxix.  7),  '  Entreat  for  the  peace  of  the  city  whither  I  have 
taken  you  captives,  and  pray  for  it  unto  the  Lord  : '  you  know 
also  the  saying  of  our  Rabbis,  '  Tyre  was  not  filled  until  after 
the  desolation  of  Jerusalem  e.'  ®The  prophet  predicts  how 
in  those  days  the  Gentiles  will  acknowledge  their  error,  and 
confess  it  with  their  lips.  And  Isaiah  says  (ii.  20),  '  In  that 
day  a  man  shall  cast  his  idols  of  silver,  and  his  idols  of  gold,' 
etc. ;  and  again  (xxix.  24), '  They  that  erred  in  spirit  shall  come 
to  understanding.'  But  the  Lord,  etc.  :  as  though  to  say.  Now 
we  see  that  it  was  God's  will  that  we  should  all  sin  against  them, 
though  far  be  it  from  us  to  say  that  God  was  himself  the  cause 
of  their  thus  sinning,  as  Job  says,  '  Why  hast  thou  set  me  as 
a  mark*  for  thee  ?'  (vi.  20.)  ^  Hei'e  a  fi-esh  class  of  the  calami- 
ties inflicted  upon  Israel  is  described  by  the  Gentiles :  hoAv, 
namely,  they  oppressed  him  day  after  day  by  the  imposition 
of  taxes  and  other  burdens,  as  Scripture  says,  '  They  devour 
Israel  with  their  whole  mouth'  (Is.  ix.  11) ;  and,  'Thou  makest 
us  like  sheep  to  be  eaten'  (Ps.  xliv.  ii)  ;  for  Israel  was  oppressed 
and  afflicted  by  them,  without  opening  his  mouth.  As  a  siteep. 
The  nation  is  fi'equently  spoken  of  as  a  sheep  ;  for  example, 
by  Jeremiah  (1.  17).  Here  the  Gentiles  declare  that  in  spite 
of  the  misery  they  had  occasioned  to  Israel,  the  latter  had  no 

■^  Cf.  Ezek.  xxvi.  2. 

f  Lit.  a  meeting-place  for  the  arrows, — the  substantive  corresponding  to 
tlie  verb  in  the  text,  caused  to  meet. 


236  XXXIV.  [liii.  8- 

mouth  wherewith  to  cry  out  against  it — in  the  words  of  the 
Psalmist,  '  I  am  dnmb,  I  open  not  my  mouth'  (xxxix.  lo);  and, 
'  I  am  become  as  a  man  that  hearetli  not,  and  in  whose  mouth 
are  no  reproofs'  (xxxviii.  15).  *'The  king  who  rules  over  a 
people  is  called  a  coercer  C^Viy),  as  when  the  Lord  says  to 
Samuel,  '  This  same  shall  reign  over  my  people'  (i  Sam.  ix.  17). 
Here  it  is  described  how  Israel  was  deprived  of  sovereign  and 
judicial  power,  i.  e.  of  the  judges  and  rulers  appointed  by  their 
Law,  in  accordance  with  the  prediction,  '  And  there  is  none 
coerced  or  released'  (Deut.  xxxii.  36).  And  so  the  Psalmist 
says  (Ixxxix.  45),  '  Thou  hast  made  his  purity  to  cease,'  i.  e. 
removed  the  priest  who  judges  and  purifies  [i.  e.  acquits],  '  and 
cast  his  throne  down  to  the  ground,'  i.  e.  cast  down  tbeir  throne 
so  that  they  are  without  a  king.  But  now  ivho  is  able  to  tell  of 
the  greatness  of  his  generation  ?  because,  in  the  eyes  of  the 
nations,  he  seemed  to  have  been  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of  the 
living.  So  Isaiah  writes  (Ix.  15),  'Whereas  thou  hast  been 
forsaken  and  hated,  etc.,  I  will  make  thee  a  joy  of  many  genera- 
tions;' and  the  Psalmist  (xlviii.  14),  'That  ye  may  tell  it  to 
an  after  generation;'  and  Joel  (iv.  20),  'But  Judah  shall  dwell 
for  ever,  and  Jei'usalem  to  all  generations.'  For  the  transgres- 
sion of  my  people.  The  kings  of  each  nation  of  the  earth  confess 
that  the  blows  wherewith  they  had  smitten  Isi'ael  arose  from 
the  transgression  of  their  own  people,  and  not  from  any  offence 
on  Israel's  part :  this  has  been  already  intimated  by  Isaiah 
himself  (xlvi.  8),  '  Remember  this,  and  shew  yourselves  firm ; 
bring  it  again  to  mind,  0  ye  transgressors ! '  and  in  another 
place  (i.  28),  'The  destruction  of  transgressors  and  sinners.' 
■'  Another  of  the  calamities  which  the  nation  endured  was 
being  buried  in  a  foreign  land.  Amos  says  to  Amaziah 
(vii.  17),  'Thou  shalt  die  in  an  unclean  land;'  and  the  prophet 
Hosea  (ix.  6),  'Egypt  shall  gather  them  up,  Memphis  shall 
bury  them.'  And  the  wealthy  amongst  them  they  afflicted  and 
murdered  by  various  kinds  of  death,  in  order  to  devour  their 
riches,  as  Zechariah  says  (xi.  4  f.),  '  Whose  possessors  slay  them, 


-liii.  II.]  XXXIV.  237 

etc.,  and  tlieir  own  shepherds  pity  them  not.'  The  words  and 
ilie  rich  in  his  deaths  are  thus  added  because  the  Gentiles  used 
to  murder  the  Israelites  for  the  purpose  of  securing  their  wealth. 
Because  he  did  no  violence;  i.e.  because  we  had  not  sinned 
against  them,  or  as  the  Psalmist  says,  speaking  in  the  name 
of  the  people  (Ixix.  5),  'What  I  had  not  robbed,  I  then  restored.' 
And  there  was  no  deceit  in  his  mouth, — in  the  words  of  the 
prophet  Zcphaniah,  when  alluding  to  the  same  period  (iii.  13), 
'  The  remnant  of  Israel  shall  not  do  iniquity,  neither  shall  a 
deceitful  tongue  be  found  in  their  mouth.'  ^^  Here  the  prophet 
begins  to  address  the  nation,  reminding  them  that  the  decree 
to  bruise  them  was  from  the  Lord  :  in  the  words  of  the  Mourner 
(i.  5),  'The  Lord  hath  made  her  to  grieve,'  or  of  the  Psalmist 
(xliv.  20),  'Thou  hast  bruised  us  in  the  place  of  jackals.'  If, 
however,  his  soul  makes  itself  a  trespass-offering  (as  the  prophet 
Ezekiel  says,  xliii.  10,  'That  they  may  be  ashamed  of  their 
iniquities),  he  shall  see  seed,  shall  lengthen  days — alluding  to  the 
multiplication  of  their  children,  and  length  of  their  lives,  which 
are  both  predicted  by  Hosea  (i.  10)  and  Isaiah  (Ixv.  20) — am,d 
the  2^leasure  of  the  Lord,  i.  e.  whatever  he  desii-es,  shall  prosper 
in  their  hand, — as  Isaiah  liimself  says  (Ixii.  4),  '  Thou  shalt 
be  called  Hephzibah,  for  the  Lord  hath  pleasure  in  thee.'  ^^For 
tlie  travail  and  weariness  which  came  upon  them,  they  will  now 
see  and  be  proportionately  satisfied  with  'fulness  of  joys:'  in 
the  words  of  Joel  (ii.  25), '  I  will  restore  to  you  the  years  that  the 
locust  hath  eaten,  the  cankerworm,  and  the  caterpiller,  and  the 
palmerworm ;  and  ye  shall  eat  in  plenty  and  be  satisfied,  and 
my  people  shall  never  be  ashamed,'  where  the  prophet  promises 
that  all  which  the  four  kinds  of  locust,  i.  e.  the  four  kingdoms, 
have  devoured,  will  be  restored  to  us  by  the  Holy  One,  until  we 
are  again  able  to  eat  in  plenty  and  praise  his  name.  Similarly, 
it  is  foretold  here  how  Israel  will  rejoice  after  the  travail  of 
captivity,  and  be  satisfied  with  the  fulness  of  joys  prepared 
for  him  by  the  Almighty  in  the  future  redemption.  In  those 
days,  he  adds,  the  land  will  be  so  filled  with  the  knowledge 


238  XXXIV.  [liii.  12. 

of  the  Lord  that  every  one  hy  Ms  knowledge  will  justify  the 
just ;  and  this,  not  merely  amongst  those  of  his  own  people,  Init 
amongst  many,  exactly  as  Micah  also  proclaims  how  tlie  nation 
will  *  judge  amongst  many  peoples,  and  rebuke  strong  nations ' 
(iv.  3).  And  tlieir  iniquities,  those,  namely,  of  the  'many,'  he 
will  hear,  i.  e.  each  individual  member  of  the  nation  will  bear 
its  iniquities  for  himself ;  they  will  no  longer  need  God  to  take 
away  their  iniquities  as  he  had  done  hitherto  (for  one  of  his 
blessed  attributes  is  his  readiness  to  forgive  sin) :  accordingly 
Ezekiel  Avi-ites  (xxiii.  49),  'And  they  will  put  your  lewdness 
upon  you,  and  the  sins  of  your  idols  shall  ye  bear.'  ^^The 
prophet  now  proclaims  how  the  reward  for  all  the  travail 
which  had  passed  over  them  during  exile,  is  with  the  Lord ; 
for  he  will  give  them  the  wealth  of  the  Gentiles, — as  the  prophet 
Zechariali  foretells  (xiv.  i),  'Thy  spoil  shall  be  divided  in  the 
midst  of  thee;'  and  Isaiah  (Ix.  16),  '  Thou  shalt  suck  the  milk  of 
the  Gentiles,  and  shalt  suck  the  breast  of  kings.'  And  all  this 
will  be  awarded  to  them  because  each  one  of  them  had  given 
himself  up  to  die  for  the  service  of  God, — as  the  Psalmist  says 
(xliv.  23),  'For  thy  sake  we  are  slain  all  the  day  long,  we  are 
counted  as  sheep  for  the  slaughter.'  He  was  numbered 
with  the  ti-ansgressors ;  for  all  the  Gentiles  ranked  them  in  the 
same  category  with  the  wicked :  go  and  learn  how  the  '  adver- 
saries of  Judah '  '  wrote  an  accusation,'  and  sent  it  to  the  Persian 
monarch,  requesting  'search  to  be  made'  in  the  records  of  the 
state,  in  order  that  it  might  be  discovered  how  the  city  had  ever 
been  '  rebellious,  and  hurtful  to  kings  and  provinces'  (Ezraiv.  i, 
vi.  1 5)  :  you  see  from  this  that  our  nation  was  always  considered, 
by  those  who  knew  it,  to  be  rebellious  and  apt  to  transgress  from 
its  allegiance.  Now,  therefore,  the  reward  is  promised,  /  will 
divide  him  a  portion  with  the  many.  And  made  intercession 
for  the  transgressors,  as  the  Psalmist  says  (Ixxii.  15),  'He  shall 
pray  for  him  continually :  for  we  find  yjD  nsed  in  the  sense 
of  interceding  (as  Jer.  vii.  16).  It  may  also,  however,  signify  to 
strike  or  slay  (i  Kings  ii.  29,  and  often) :  in  the  latter  case  the 


liii.  12,]  XXXIV.  239 

meaning  will  be  that  he  will  slay  the  transgressors,  as  Isaiah, 
speaking  as  one  bringing  glad  tidings  to  the  nation,  says 
(xxx.  25),  'And  there  shall  be  upon  every  lofty  mountain  rivers, 
streams  of  water,  in  the  day  of  the  great  slaughter,  when  the 
towers  fall.' 


XXXV.     R.  MEIR  ARAMAH. 

LII.  "J/^/  servant.  In  a  preceding  chapter  (li.  19)  the'« 
prophet  (using  the  singular  number)  had  made  the  announce- 
ment to  Israel,  '  Two  things  are  come  unto  thee,' — the  first, 
affecting  their  possessions,  being  desolation  and  destruction ; 
the  second,  affecting  their  body,  being  the  famine  and  the  sword; 
and  such  is  their  lot  to-day:  a^but  afterwards  he  declares  that 
their  condition  will  be  turned  into  one  of  joy  and  gladness, 
saying  (lii.  7),  'How  beautiful  upon  the  mountains,' etc.  He 
explains,  however,  that  this  will  only  take  place  after  the  lapse 
of  long  years  :  meanwhile  the  people  need  watching  and  warning 
not  to  mingle  with  the  heathen  ;  and  hence  the  command  (ver. 
14),  'Depart  ye,  depart,  come  forth  thence;  touch  not  the  un- 
clean,' with  the  explanation,  '  For  ye  shall  not  come  forth  in 
haste.'  Here  the  prophet  foretells  that,  as  the  whole  nation 
are  to  meet  with  contumely  and  reproach  among  the  Gentiles, 
so,  or  rather  to  a  greater  degree,  will  the  wise  meet  with  con- 
tumely and  reproach  in  Isi-ael  itself — whether  as  affecting  their 
substance  or  their  persons  :  it  will,  however,  as  he  explains, 
redound  to  their  advantage;  and  accordingly  Israel  may  hope 
one  day  to  obtain  authority  over  the  Gentiles.  And  this  is  the 
sense  of  'Behold  ray  seiTant  shall  prosper;'  but  what  follows* 
^*As  many  were  astonished  at  thee,  refers  to  Israel,  when  he  was 
despised  and  rejected  in  their  eyes.  '^-LIII.  ^  So  marred,  viz.  as 
compared  with  other  men,  was  the  countenance  of  this  'wise' 
one  :  you  know  the  conditions  under  which  he  lived :  '  Thou 
shalt  eat  a  morsel  with  salt,  and  drink  water  by  measure ;  thou 

"  See  the  addition,  p.  387  (Hebrew  text). 


liii.  4-7.]  K.  MEIR    ARAMAH.  241 

shalt  sleep  upon  the  ground,  and  live  a  life  of  pain''.'  Who 
under  such  conditions  as  these,  which  actually  fell  to  Israel's  lot, 
could  live  the  ordinary  life  of  a  human  heing  1  So  will  lie  scatter 
many  natioiis,  and  by  his  knowledge  hold  sway  over  them,  and 
gain  admittance  to  the  table  of  kings  ;  for  they  will  hear  from 
his  lips,  after  the  arm  of  the  Lord  has  been  revealed  upon  him, 
what  had  never  before  been  told  them.  Although,  however,  in 
consequence  of  these  conditions  of  life,  their  manners  are  poor 
(for  they  are  generally  intractable),  we  nevertheless  shall  desire 
them,  because  of  their  intelligence.  *  The  prophet  now  pro- 
ceeds to  state  a  striking  truth,  pointing  out  how,  when  chas- 
tisements fall  on  one  like  this  just  one,  the  worshippers  of  stars 
and  constellations  c  are  led  by  them  to  infer  the  wickedness 
of  their  belief,  according  to  the  saying d,  'There  is  a  just  man 
and  it  goes  ill  with  him  : '  not  understanding  that  '  the  just 
perisheth  and  no  one  perceiveth  that  he  is  carried  away  from 
misfortune  (to  come) :'  for  a  righteous  man  is  '  like  the  lamp 
of  (jod  before  the  people,'  which,  however,  by  being  wicked  and 
sinful,  the  people  extinguish ;  and  this  being  the  case,  their 
death  is  a  proof  of  the  people's  sin,  rather  than  (which  God 
forbid  !)  of  the  Almighty's  injustice.  Accordingly,  the  prophet 
says,  Surely  he  carried  our  sicknesses  and  bare  our  -pains ;  hut 
we  thought  him  stricken  and  smitten  of  God,  in  consequence  of 
an  uneven  dispensation  of  Providence.  ^  There  are  two  kinds  of 
chastisement  which  may  possibly  fall  upon  man,  the  chastise- 
ments of  love,  and  the  chastisements  of  sin  ;  and  both  these  came 
upon  Israel  on  our  account.  For  of  this  people  it  is  said.  He 
was  wounded  for  our  transgressions,  bruised  for  our  iniquities  ; 
and  again.  The  chastisement  of  our  peace,  i.  e.  which  resulted 
in  our  peace,  rested  likewise  upon  him.  ''The  two  kinds  of 
penalty  mentioned  above  as  having  been  imposed  upon  the 
nation  collectively  by  the  Gentiles  are  here  further  described  : 
they  affect  his  person  and  his  property  respectively,  the  former 

**  Abhoth,  vi.  4.  <=  I.  e.  the  heathen.  «•  Above,  p.  15, 

R 


242  R.  MEIR    ARAMAH.  [liii.  10-12. 

being  indicated  by  the  words  Like  a  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter, 
the  latter  by  those  which  follow,  As  a  lamb  which  before  her 
shearers  is  dumb.  "*A  demonstration  that  by  comprehending 
the  meaning  of  sufferings  falling  on  the  just  for  his  sins  (for 
there  is  none  so  just  as  never  to  commit  sin)  we  can  under- 
stand those  which  fell  upon  him  for  the  sin  of  the  people  that 
is  here  spoken  of.  The  prophet  declares  that  the  former  will 
not  issue  in  death  :  for  every  one  is  aware  that  a  righteous  man 
repents  and  confesses  his  guilt;  and  when  he  does  this,  he  re- 
ceives mercy  from  heaven,  like  Hezekiah,  and  lives.  But  if  he 
is  entangled  in  the  iniquity  of  his  generation,  repentance  is  not 
within  his  power,  and  he  must  die  in  consequence  ;  hence  it  is 
said,  The  L(yrd  was  pleased  to  bruise  him,  as  though  for  its 
own  iniquities  (as  we  have  just  explained) ;  when,  then,  his  soul 
lays  a  trespass-offering,  viz.  upon  itself,  and  recognises  its  guilt, 
it  will  of  necessity  see  seed  and  lengthen  days,  for  the  pleasure 
of  the  Lord  will  prosper  in  his  hand,  so  as  to  make  atone- 
ment for  him.  For  myself,  however,  I  notice  two  things : 
I.  that  he  is  righteous,  2.  that  he  sees  and  is  satisfied  with 
'  many  and  sore  troubles,'  and  that  nothing  short  of  death 
(as  I  have  said)  can  secure  atonement  for  him :  this  being  so, 
it  follows  that  he  must  suffer,  not  for  his  own  sins,  but  for  those 
of  the  people.  "  Accordingly  the  next  verse  says.  Of  the  travail 
of  his  soul  he  shall  see  and  be  satisfied,  referring  to  the  mis- 
fortunes spoken  of;  and.  By  his  knowledge  lie  will  jnstify  the 
just :  if  he  does  this,  however,  he  will  bear  their  iniquities, 
i.  e.  bear  them  on  their  behalf.  ^'^Au  explanation  that  the 
sufferings  are  no  crime  in  him ;  for  in  a  world  that  is  wholly 
good  the  Lord  will  pay  him  his  reward  amongst  the  mighty  and 
the  strong,  because  his  deserts  will  be  great :  he  then  (as  they 
say)  will  be  '  higher  than  Abraham,  more  exalted  than  Moses, 
and  loftier  than  the  ministering  angels,'  for  there  is  no  dignity 
more  elevated  than  that  of  him  who  sanctifies  the  name  of 
Heaven,  by  being  involved  in,  and  suffering  for,  the  iniquity  of 
his  age. 


XXXVI.     YIZHAQ  TROKI. 

LII.  "From  this  verse,  as  also  from  liii.  i,  with  those  which 
follow  as  far  as  liii.  12,  the  Nazarenes  argue  to  prove  that  Isaiah 
predicted  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth  :  of  him,  they  affirm,  he  says.  He 
shall  be  high  and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceedingly,  for  the  lan- 
guage here  employed  is  aj^plicable  to  him  alone  and  none  besides. 
In  the  same  way  they  suppose  him  to  be  referred  to  in  the  words, 
He  carried  our  sicknesses,  etc. ;  and.  He  was  wounded  for  our 
transgressions  :  because  Jesus  suffered  affliction  for  their  sakes 
to  save  their  souls  by  his  death  from  the  power  of  Satan,  who 
ruled  over  thera.  In  reply  it  may  be  shewn  that  their  argument 
is  not  valid :  for  whereas  the  text  says,  '  Behold  my  servant,^ 
how  can  they  apply  this  to  Jesus  of  Nazareth  ]  since  they  them- 
selves, according  to  their  own  absurd  tenets,  assign  to  him  Deity; 
and  how  could  God  in  any  prophecy  be  called  a  servant  ?  If 
now  the  objector  maintains  that  he  is  termed  a  '  servant '  in 
respect  of  his  material  body,  and  '  God '  in  respect  of  his  nature 
as  a  spirit,  we  must  reply  that  it  has  already  been  irrefragably 
demonstrated  in  §  10  that  even  from  the  point  of  view  of  the 
gospel  Jesus  of  Nazareth  is  not  God,  and  still  less  so  from  his 
own  standpoint :  he  never  in  any  place  speaks  of  himself  as 
God,  as  will  be  further  shewn  in  the  second  part  of  this  treatise, 
by  a  detailed  examination  of  the  individual  expressions  used  by 
the  Evangelists.  It  must  in  addition  be  remembered  that  the 
words,  He  shall  he  high,  etc.,  were  not  fulfilled  in  him :  since  he 
was  condemned  to  death  like  any  other  common  man  among  the 
people.    Nor  was  the  prediction,  He  shall  see  seed,  shall  lengthen 

B  2 


244  YIZHAQ   TROKT.  [Hi.  I3- 

daya,  ever  fulfilled  in  liini  :  ho  had  no  seed  ;  and  it  cannot  be 
said  that  his  disci]dos  are  here  meant  by  his  '  seed,'  for  we  never 
find  disciples  termed  seed  but  only  sons,  just  as  teachers  are 
spoken  of  as  '  fathers :'  the  term  seed  is  restricted  to  the  de- 
scemlatits  of  a  man,  who  come  forth  out  of  his  loins.  Similarly 
we  do  not  find  that  he  '  had  long  life  ;'  for  he  was  put  to  death 
when  thirty-three  years  old.  And  they  cannot  legitimately  refer 
this  expression  to  the  Godhead  ;  because  the  Deity  is  not  deter- 
mined by  length  of  days :  he  is  the  first,  and  he  is  the  last,  and 
his  years  have  no  end.  Then,  again,  of  whom  will  they  interpret 
the  verse.  Therefore  I  will  divide,  etc.  1  who  are  the  many  and 
the  mighty  that  are  made  his  equals,  and  with  whom,  as  they 
imagine,  he  is  to  divide  spoil?  And  when  it  is  said.  And  made 
intercession  for  transgressors,  to  whom  did  he  intercede  for  them 
if,  as  their  fond  belief  will  have  it,  he  was  God  himself  1  And 
there  are  many  places  similar  to  these.  The  truth  is,  the  whole 
Pai'ashah,  down  to  liii.  12,  was  spoken  prophetically  to  Isaiah 
with  reference  to  the  people  of  Israel,  who  were  enduring  the 
yoke  of  exile,  and  who  are  called  '  my  servant,'  in  the  singular, 
as  frequently  elsewhere,  Is.  xli.  8,  9,  xliv.  i,  2,  21,  xlv.  4  ;  and  as 
we  find  also  to  be  the  case  in  the  prophecy  of  Jei-emiah,  xlvi.  27, 
28;  and  in  the  Psalms,  cxxxvi.  22.  You  see  that  in  all  these 
passages  Scripture  designates  the  Israelitish  nation  as  a  servant, 
or  as  God's  servant,  in  the  singular.  And  so  when  the  Ten 
Commandments  were  given  we  observe  that  the  Almighty  spoke 
to  600,000  men  in  the  singular  number  ['  I  am  the  Lord,  thy 
God,'  etc.]  If  now  they  argue  from  the  text.  Surely  he  carried 
our  sicknesses,  etc.,  and  assert  that  it  was  never  at  any  time 
either  seen  or  heard  of  that  the  people  of  Israel  bore  sickness 
or  pain,  or  received  stripes  for  the  iniquity  of  other  nations  (for 
even  the  calamities  and  chastisement  which  they  did  endure 
were  for  their  own  sins,  and  not  for  those  of  other  people),  the 
reply  is  clear  that  it  is  a  common  custom  in  the  mouth  of  the 
prophets  to  describe  the  miseries  and  humiliation  of  the  captivity 
under  the  image  of  sickness  or  wounds,  as  Is.  i.  5,  6,  xxx.  26, 


lii.  13.]  YIZHAQ   TROKI.  245 

Hos.  vi.  I,  Lam.  ii.  13,  Jer.  x.  19  (where  the  prophet  explains 
what  the  '  hurt,'  and  the  '  wound,'  and  the  '  sickness '  are,  by  add- 
ing, verse  20,  '  My  tent  is  wasted,  and  all  my  cords  are  broken,' 
etc.),  XXX.  12-17  (the  next  verses  shew  what  the  'bondage'  and 
'healing'  denote,  '  Behold  I  bring  again  the  captivity  of  Jacob's 
tents,'  etc.),  xxxiii.  6  (explained  by  verses  7  f.  to  the  end  of  the 
Parashah).  From  all  these  passages  it  is  plain  that  Scripture 
speaks  of  the  exile,  with  its  attendant  misery  and  weariness,  as 
a  sickness,  a  wound,  a  breach,  a  stripe ;  while  redemption,  free- 
dom, and  deliverance  are  described  under  the  metaphor  of  healing 
or  medicine.  The  general  design,  then,  of  the  prophecy  con- 
tained in  this  Parashah  is  to  confirm  and  encoui'age  us  in 
the  assurance  that  although  by  our  exiles  we  are  exceedingly 
depressed  and  brought  down,  even  to  the  dust,  there  is  still  hope 
for  us  hereafter,  that  through  the  Lord's  compassion  on  us  we 
may  again  be  'high  and  exalted,'  and  that  from  the  time  of 
redemption  onwards  our  position  may  rise  until  the  nations 
of  the  world  and  even  their  kings,  when  they  see  the  salvation 
of  Israel  and  their  elevation  to  the  highest  conceivable  pitch  of 
dignity  and  greatness,  become  astonished  and  awe-struck  at  the 
spectacle  :  for  just  as  before  they  had  marvelled  at  our  depres- 
sion in  exile,  when  every  nation  on  the  face  of  the  earth  looked 
down  upon  us  and  despised  us,  so  they  will  then  marvel  in  like 
manner  at  our  exaltation,  and  speak  of  it  continually,  saying 
one  to  another,  Lo,  now  we  perceive  cleai'ly  that  all  we  like 
sheep  without  a  shepherd  have  gone  astray,  we  have  turned  each 
after  liis  own  way  :  '  our  fathers  have  inherited  lies  and  vanity, 
wherein  there  is  no  profit'  (Jer,  xvi.  19),  neither  is  there  any 
divine  law,  or  true  religion,  in  any  nation  of  the  world  except 
in  Israel.  Prom  this  we  see  further  that  the  chastisements  and 
calamities  borne  by  Isi'ael  during  their  captivity  did  not  fall 
upon  them  for  their  own  iniquity ;  it  was  we  who  for  the 
multitude  of  our  sins  had  rendered  ourselves  liable  to  endure 
them,  but  the  sickness  and  the  pain  which  ought  to  have  been 
ours  came  upon  them,  in  order  to  make  atonement  for  our  guilt 


246  YIZHAQ   TROKI.  [Hi.  i3- 

in  treating  tliem  as  our  slaves ;  and,  indeed,  they  were  ever 
praying  and  interceding  for  our  peace  and  the  prosperity  of 
our  kingdoms  :  we  however,  on  the  contrary,  thought  that  these 
troubles  had  fallen  upon  them  because  of  the  greatness  of  their 
iniquity  (i.  e.  the  murder  of  the  Messiah  and  of  God).  Thus  far 
extend  the  words  of  the  Gentiles. 

To  this  it  may  be  added  that  the  nations  of  the  world,  being 
as  insignificant  in  the  eyes  of  the  Creator  as  the  animals,  do  not 
have  their  sins  providentially  visited  upon  them  from  heaven, 
except  when  they  either  do  harm  to  Israel,  while  engaged  in 
executing  God's  pleasure,  or  perpetrate  some  great  enormity, 
such  as  was  committed  by  the  generation  of  the  Flood,  or  by 
Sodom  and  Gomorrha :  in  such  cases  the  Almighty  visits  their 
iniquity,  and  consumes  them  utterly.  Israel,  however,  is  treated 
differently  :  in  his  love  for  us,  God  demands  the  penalty  for  our 
offences  in  this  life  little  by  little,  by  means  of  exiles  and  partial 
punishments,  without  making  a  full  end  of  us ;  as  he  assures  us, 
when  he  says  by  the  mouth  of  his  prophet  (Jer.  xxx.  1 1),  '  I  am 
with  thee,  saith  the  Lord,  to  save  thee :  I  will  not  make  a  full 
end  of  thee ;  but  I  will  correct  thee  in  measure,  and  will  not 
hold  thee  altogether  guiltless;'  and  similarly  in  Amos  (iii.  2),  and 
the  Proverbs  (iii.  12),  'Whom  the  Lord  loveth  he  correcteth.' 
The  reason  of  this  is  that  Israel  is  the  choicest  of  human  kind, 
just  as  the  heart  is  the  choicest  organ  in  the  body*;  when, 
therefore,  they  are  in  exile  in  the  midst  of  the  nations,  like  the 
heart  in  the  midst  of  the  other  organs,  they  bear  all  the  calami- 
ties which  fall  upon  the  Gentiles  in  whose  midst  they  are, 
exactly  as  the  heart  bears  the  bitterness  and  anguish  of  all  the 
body  in  the  centre  of  which  it  resides.  And  so  it  is  written 
(Ps.  cvi.  35  f.),  '  They  were  mingled  with  the  Gentiles,  and 
learned  their  works,'  etc.;  and  again  (Prov.  xiv.  10),  'The  heart 
knoweth  the  bitterness  of  its  own  soul.'  As,  moreover,  in  time 
of  trouble  it  is  the  heart  alone  which  experiences  the  anguish  of 

■  Compare  above,  p.  228. 


lii,  13.]  YIZHAQ   TROKI.  247 

grief  and  distress,  so  in  time  of  prosperity  it  is  the  heart  also 
which  alone  experiences  the  delights  of  gladness  and  joy ;  and 
this  is  what  is  meant  when  in  the  verse  from  the  Proverbs  it  is 
added,  'And  no  stranger  miugleth  in  its  joy.'  Further,  as  the 
heart  is  the  most  important  part  of  the  body,  so  is  Israel  the 
most  important  of  all  the  nations ;  and  as  by  bleeding  some 
vein  which  originates  in  the  heart  the  whole  body  is  healed,  so 
by  union  with  Israel  healing  is  secured  for  all  nations,  so  soon 
as  they  come  after  us  and  join  themselves  to  us,  as  it  is  written 
(Is.  xiv.  i),  'And  strangers  shall  be  joined  with  them,'  etc.  And 
it  is  admitted  that  God  chose  Israel  to  be  his  peculiar  people 
(Ex.  xix.  5)  :  he  thex'efore  gave  them  his  law  to  teach  them  the 
way  in  which  they  should  walk,  and  the  deeds  they  should  do ; 
he  also  (because  '  his  mercy  is  over  all  his  works ')  put  it  in 
their  hearts  to  instruct  the  rest  of  the  world,  as  he  says  in  the 
same  passage,  'Ye  shall  be  to  me  a  kingdom  of  priests;'  and 
again  (Is.  Ixi.  6),  '  Ye  shall  be  named  the  priests  of  the  Lord.' 
Scripture  thus  addresses  the  whole  Israelitish  nation  by  the  title 
of  priests,  in  order  to  teach  us  that  as  the  priests  and  Levites 
used  to  give  the  people  instruction  in  the  Law  and  the  Com- 
mandments (as  it  is  written,  Deut.  xxxii.  10,  'They  shall  teach 
Jacob  thy  judgments,  and  Israel  thy  law'),  so  Israel  will  be  the 
teachers  and  instructors  of  the  nations,  amongst  whom  they  are 
dispersed,  in  the  words  of  the  living  God  ;  as  it  is  written 
(Ps.  xcvi.  3),  'Tell  his  glory  amongst  the  heathen  ;'  and  (cv.  i), 
'  Praise  the  Lord,  call  upon  his  name ;  declare  his  doings 
amongst  the  peoples:'  and  as  the  Levites  and  priests  were 
supported  by  the  offerings  and  tithes  of  the  Israelites,  so  will 
the  people  of  Israel  be  supported  in  the  future  by  the  gifts  of 
the  Gentiles,  in  recognition  of  the  services  done  to  them  while 
in  exile,  and  as  a  reward  for  their  instructions ;  and  this  is  what 
is  meant  when  in  the  same  passage  from  Isaiah  it  is  said,  '  Ye 
shall  eat  the  riches  of  the  Gentiles,  and  in  their  glory  shall  ye 
boast  yourselves.'  From  this  it  follows  that  no  blessing  or 
spiritual  progress  can  possibly  accrue    to  the   nations    of   the 


248  YIZHAQ  TROKI.  [lii.  13. 

world,  except  through  the  mediation  of  Israel,  as  it  is  written, 
'  And  in  thy  seed  shall  all  nations  of  the  earth  be  blessed ' 
(Gen.  xxii,  18,  xxvi.  4) ;  and  again, '  In  thee  and  in  thy  seed  shall 
all  kindreds  of  the  world  be  blessed'  (xxviii.  14);  and  as  we 
have  explained  in  §  13.  You  see,  then,  that  this  people  was 
chosen  by  the  Almighty  to  be  his  portion  and  his  inheritance, 
as  it  is  written,  *  For  he  hath  chosen  Jacob  unto  himself,  and 
Israel  as  his  own  possession'  (Ps.  cxxxv.  4);  and,  'For  the  Lord's 
portion  is  his  people,  Jacob  is  the  lot  of  his  inheritance '  (Deut. 
xxxii.  9) ;  and,  in  addition,  to  be  likewise  a  guide  to  other 
nations,  instructing  them  in  the  way  of  the  Lord  :  accordingly, 
*  to  them  alone  was  given '  the  divine  law  to  shew  them  the  right 
way,  for  when  the  leader  walks  on  the  good  road,  then  all  those 
who  follow  after  him  will  attain  the  'haven  of  their  desire ;'  while 
those  who  do  not  follow  him,  or  are  forsaken  by  him,  will  most 
certainly  go  astray.  Wlioever,  therefore,  wishes  to  go  on  the 
right  way  must  take  hold  of  the  skirts  of  the  leader's  garment, 
in  order  not  to  be  deserted  and  left  to  wander  away  from  the 
path  intended  by  God  to  be  adhered  to.  And  this  is  what  is 
described  by  Zechariah  in  his  prophecy  concerning  the  future 
(viii.  23)  :  'In  those  days  shall  ten  men  out  of  all  languages  of 
the  nations  take  hold  of  the  skirt  of  him  that  is  a  Jew,  saying, 
AVe  will  go  with  you,  for  we  have  heard  that  God  is  with  you.' 
Moreover,  of  the  goodness  which  the  Lord  will  then  bestow  upon 
the  guides,  he  will  bestow  also  by  their  mediation  upon  those 
that  follow  them,  as  it  is  wi-itten,  '  And  it  shall  be,  if  thou  go 
with  us,  that  what  goodness  the  Lord  shall  do  unto  us,  the  same 
will  we  do  unto  thee'  (Num.  x.  32), — a  promise  which  we  find 
fulfilled  in  Jethro's  seed  (Jer.  xxxv.  19):  'Thus  saith  the  Lord 
of  hosts,  the  God  of  Israel,  Jonadab  the  son  of  E,echab  shall 
not  want  a  man  to  stand  before  me  for  ever,'  a  declaration 
resembling  the  assurance  made  to  Israel  (Is.  Ixvi.  22)  that,  like 
the  new  heaven  and  the  new  earth,  their  seed  and  their  name 
should  stand  before  God  for  ever.  Similarly,  various  vexations 
and  accidents  of  the  road  will  befal  the  leaders  travelling:  in  the 


lii.  13.]  YIZHAQ   TROKI.  249 

front,  especially  in  a  host  marching  to  battle,  when  those  in 
the  van  are  exposed  to  wounds  and  blows  and  bruises ;  never- 
theless, when  they  defeat  their  enemies  and  divide  the  spoil,  then 
those  who  follow  after  them  have  a  share  in  the  booty  without 
having  suffered  anything ;  and  this  is  what  Isaiah  alludes  to 
when,  speaking  of  the  future  under  the  form  of  a  parable,  he 
says.  He  is  toounded  for  our  transgressions,  bruised  for  our 
iniquities,  and  by  his  stripes  we  are  healed ;  and  in  the  other 
passages  resembling  this.  And  as  those  who  advance  first  to 
battle  receive  more  wounds  than  those  who  come  after  them,  so 
they  also  obtain  a  larger  amount  of  spoil ;  as  the  prophet  says, 
Therefore  I  ivill  divide  Mm  a  portion  ivith  the  many,  etc.  It  is 
also  clearly  evident,  from  the  verses  contiguous  to  this  section, 
both  before  and  after,  that  tlie  text  relates  solely  to  the  calamities 
and  depression  of  the  nation  while  in  exile,  and  to  their  elevation 
and  high  honour  from  the  period  of  redemption  onwards  :  it  is 
evident  from  those  which  precede  it,  as,  for  example,  from  lii.  i, 
'Awake,  awake,'  etc.,  with  the  subsequent  verses  as  far  as  verse 
12,  'Ye  shall  not  go  out  with  haste,  nor  go  by  flight,'  etc., 
which  is  immediately  succeeded  by  the  Parashah  itself;  it  is 
evident  also  from  those  that  follow  it,  as  liv.  i, '  Shout,  0  bari'en,' 
etc.,  with  the  verses  following,  which  all  attest  and  announce  the 
future  deliverance,  and  declare  that  after  it  the  people  shall  never 
again  go  into  exile,  as  he  states  in  one  of  the  previous  Parashahs 
(li.  22),  'Thou  shalt  no  more  drink  it  again;'  and  similarly  (lii.  i), 
'  Henceforth  there  shall  no  more  come  into  thee  the  uncircum- 
cised  or  unclean  ;'  and  below  (liv.  9),  '  For  this  is  as  the  waters 
of  Noah  unto  me,'  etc.  Such,  then,  is  the  general  import  of  this 
Parashah  :  we  shall  now  proceed  to  explain  each  separate  verse  of 
it  by  itself  in  the  name  of  Him  whose  name  is  blessed. 

LII.  ^^7''3K'^  signifies  to  prosper,  as  i  Sam.  xvii.  14;  the 
meaning  being  that  Israel  will  pi'osper  when  he  comes  forth 
from  the  captivity  of  Edom  and  Ishmael^,  who  are  spoken  of 

''  I.e.  Rome  and  Islam. 


250  YIZHAQ   TROKI.  [Hi.  14- 

above  (lii.  i)  as  the  ' uncircumcised  and  unclean:'  from  that 
time  onwards  he  will  he  high  and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceedingly: 
the  idea  of  elevation  is  expressed  in  every  fonn  in  order  to 
indicate  that  our  future  exaltation  will  be  the  highest  pos- 
sible or  imaginable  even  for  the  choicest  of  the  human  kind. 
**  WO^  is  to  he  astonished,  as  Ezek.  xxviii.  19  :  'As  many  were 
astonislted  at  thee,  because  of  thy  depression  and  the  length  of 
thy  captivity,  until  they  said  one  to  another,  Of  a  truth  (}3  as 
Num.  xxvii.  6)  his  countenance  is  mari'ed  beyond  that  of  any 
other  man,  and  his  form  more  than  the  rest  of  the  children  of 
men  (for  it  is  a  custom  of  the  Gentiles,  when  they  see  a  man 
very  much  disfigured,  to  say,  This  man  is  as  ugly  as  a  Jew  <=), 
^^  so  will  they  then  be  astonished  at  the  greatness  of  our  exalta- 
tion, commenting  upon  it  amongst  themselves,  and  saying.  Who 
hath  believed  our  report?  etc.  (liii.  i,  with  the  verses  following), 
while  their  kings,  amazed  equally  at  our  success,  will  close  their 
mouth,  and  put  their  hand  upon  their  lips !  nr  has  a  causative 
force,  and  signifies  to  make  to  speak,  from  S]D3,  Mic.  ii.  6.  And 
the  meaning  of  Y^\>  is  to  sliut  or  close,  as  Job  v.  1 6.  The  idea  of 
the  whole  is  similar  to  that  expressed  by  the  prophet  Micah 
(vii.  10),  'The  nations  shall  see  and  be  confounded  at  all  their 
might ;  they  shall  lay  their  hand  ui)on  their  mouth,'  because 
they  will  see  in  our  exaltation  more  than  ^ohat  had  been  told 
them  from  our  lips,  and  perceive  in  our  greatness  at  that  time 
more  than  what  they  had  heard  from  the  projihets'  words. 

LIII.  '  When  the  Gentiles  behold  the  prosperity  of  Israel 
they  will  say,  Who  of  us  believed  the  report  which  we  heard  of 
him  from  the  prophets  ?  yet  now  we  are  seeing  with  our  own 
eyes  more  than  we  then  heard.  And  even  what  we  heard  we 
did  not  believe,  how,  namely,  the  arm  of  tlie  Lord  would  be 
revealed  upon  him ;  because  he  seemed  in  our  sight  to  be  insig- 
nificant and  despised.  ^  But  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  if  Ave 
failed  to  believe :  his  ascent  to  the  elevation  he  now  holds  was 

'^  Compare  above,  pp.  44,  49. 


-liii.  5.]  YIZIIAQ  TROKI.  251 

not  accomplished  by  a  natural  process ;  but  in  a  marvellous  and 
miraculous  manner,  like  the  growth  of  a  sucker  out  of  a  root  in 
the  dry  yround :  while  he  was  in  captivity,  there  was  no  one 
who  conceived  the  possibility  of  his  ever  emerging  fi-om  it :  to 
the  eye  of  human  intelligence  it  seemed  impracticable,  because 
he  had  no  form  or  comeliness,  and  no  beauty  of  face,  but  was 
marred  and  disfigured  beyond  all  other  men.  Therefore  we  had 
no  desire  or  longing  to  look  upon  him,  but  desjnsed  him,  and 
held  him  in  abhorrence.  ^  How  indeed  could  we  do  otherwise, 
when  he  was  the  most  despised  and  insignificant  o/men  ?  for  it 
was  his  lot  to  be  enduring  continually  eveiy  mental  suflfering 
and  every  bodily  wrong — such  were  the  chastisements  of  the 
captivity,  here  spoken  of  metaphorically  as  pains  and  sickness, — 
and  in  his  humiliation  and  depression  we  would  not  look  at  him, 
but  spurned  and  depreciated  him,  till  we  would  esteem  him  for 
nought.  *  The  nations  continue  declaring  their  conviction  : 
Since  we  now  have  it  confirmed  by  ocular  proof  that  the  truth 
is  with  Israel,  and  that  all  we  like  sheep  have  gone  astray,  it 
follows  that  the  calamities  in  which  the  chastisements  of  exile 
consisted  did  not  come  upon  him  for  his  own  iniquity,  but  that 
the  pains  and  sicknesses  (under  which  image  they  are  here  re- 
presented), which  ought  in  justice  to  have  fallen  upon  us,  fell 
instead  upon  him.  We,  hoivever,  thought  that  he  had  been  stricken, 
smitten  and  afflicted  by  God,  for  his  unbounded  spirit  of  rebellion 
against  him ;  but  it  did  not  happen  to  Israel  thus  :  they  were 
smitten  (as  the  next  verse  states)  for  our  iniquities  and  trans- 
gressions, not  for  their  own.  ^  ??inD ;  this  is  the  passive  partic. 
Po'lel  fx'om  TT\  (Ps.  xlviii.  7  al.)  The  meaning  of  the  cliastisement 
of  our  peace  was  upon  him,  is  this  :  The  present  world  is  a  world 
of  alteration  and  change,  and  its  goodness  is  not  perfect  or  com- 
plete ;  it  has  no  peace  that  is  free  from  suffering,  no  prosperity 
unruffled  by  vexations  and  strife,  no  joy  untouched  by  soitow 
and  sighing ;  all  its  happiness  and  all  its  delights  are  com- 
mingled with  misfortune  and  grief.  So  we,  they  say,  saw  that 
while  the  peace  fell  to  our  lot,  the  chastisement  attending  it  fell 


252  YIZHAQ   TKOKI.  [lui,  6- 

upon  him :  he  received  bruises  and  stripes,  i.  e.  the  penalties  of 
exile,  and  we  received  medicine  and  healing, — in  other  words, 
prosperity  and  power.  NQI  has  the  same  sense  as  in  Ex.  xv.  26, 
'  I  am  the  Lord  that  healeth  thee,'  as  he  had  said  before,  '  There- 
fore I  will  put  none  of  these  diseases  upon  thee,  which  I  have 
brought  upon  the  Egyptians.'  And  mi3n  is  to  be  explained  as 
Is.  i.  6,  except  that  there  the  word  has  Bagesh,  while  here  this  is 
omitted.  It  is  possible,  however,  to  derive  it  from  "I3n  with  the 
sense  appertaining  to  the  word  in  Hos.  iv.  17:  iniUn  will  then 
be  a  substantive  with  suffix  of  the  third  person,  formed  like 
iJTllia  ;  and  the  meaning  will  be  that  by  being  in  one  union  and 
fellowship  with  us,  he  used  to  intercede  with  God  for  our  adver- 
sities, and  God  used  to  hear  his  prayer  and  send  forth  healing 
for  our  wounds.  "  In  this  verse  the  Gentiles  all  confess  their 
iniquity,  which  is  at  last  revealed  before  the  sun,  saying.  Now 
we  are  sure  that  the  truth  has  been  all  along  with  Israel  and 
not  with  us ;  for  all  we  like  sheep  without  a  shepherd  liave  gone 
astray,  we  have  turned  each  after  his  own  way,  i.  e.  each  has 
turned  to  its  own  gods,  but  now  we  know  that  these  were  no 
gods,  as  it  is  written,  '  Unto  thee  will  the  Gentiles  come  from 
the  ends  of  the  earth,  and  will  say,  Our  fathers  inherited  nothing 
but  lies'  (Jer.  xvi.  19);  and  immediately  aftei'wards,  verse  20, 
'Shall  a  man  make  gods  unto  himself,  and  they  are  no  gods?' 
For  this  we  had  been  liable  to  an  infinite  penalty,  had  not 
the  Almighty  caused  tlie  penalty  of  us  all  to  meet  upon  him. 
Accordingly  till  now  he  has  performed  our  service  for  us,  carried 
our  yoke,  and  borne  our  pains ;  but  henceforth  it  is  we  who, 
voluntarily  and  heartily,  shall  have  to  do  work  for  him,  as  it  is 
written  (Ixi.  5),  'Strangers  shall  stand  and  feed  your  flocks;' 
and  (xlix.  23),  '  Kings  shall  be  thy  nursing  fathers,  and  queens 
thy  nursing  mothers,'  with  many  other  passages  of  similar  im- 
port. '  When  he  was  under  our  power  in  exile,  he  was  un- 
ceasingly oppressed  and  afflicted;  we  oppressed  him  for  money, 
exacting  from  him  'tribute,  and  excise,  and  way- tolls' (Ezra  iv.  13), 
and  much  in  addition  by  every  description  of  fraudulent  device ; 


-liii.8.]  YIZHAQ   TROKI. 


253 


and  we  afflicted  his  person  with  divers  forms  of  violence  :  yet,  in 
spite  of  all  this,  he  never  opened  his  mouth  to  cry  out  or  com- 
plain of  what  we  did  to  him,  but  endured  everything  like  the 
sheep  which  cries  not  while  being  led  to  the  slaughter,  and  lihe  a 
lamb  which,  while  men  are  shearing  it,  is  silent  and  dumb,  and 
which  does  not  even  quiver  ^  like  a  ram  by  reason  of  its  weak- 
ness (for  in  every  species  the  female  is  weaker  than  the  male). 
In  the  same  manner,  Israel  was  weak  and  prostrate  in  captivity; 
and  therefore  he  opened  not  his  mouth,  because  there  was  no  one 
to  deliver  him  out  of  our  hands,  as  the  Psalmist  says  (xliv.  12), 
'  Thou  givest  us  as  sheep  to  be  eaten ;'  and  again  in  the  same 
Psalm  (verse  23),  'We  are  counted  as  sheep  for  the  slaughter; 
and  similarly  Jeremiah  (1.  17), '  Israel  is  a  scattered  sheep  :  first 
the  king  of  Assyria  hath  devoured  him ;  and  last  this  Nebu- 
chadrezzar king  of  Babylon  hath  broken  his  bones.'  ^  From  tlie 
coercion  of  the  exile,  and  the  bond  of  captivity  and  slavery,  in 
which  he  was  held  confined  by  our  hands,  he  is  now  delivered 
and  escaped ;  and  from  judgment,  i.  e.  from  the  fraudulent 
devices  whereby  we  inflicted  sore  judgment  upon  him,  he  is  taken 
and  redeemed ;  and  his  generation,  in  which  during  the  exile  he 
suffered  many  chastisements  and  divers  forms  of  death,  tuho  is 
able  to  declare  ?  or  who  can  tell  of  all  the  trials  which  befel 
Israel  during  the  same  period,  how  again  and  again  he  was  cut 
ofi"  out  of  the  land  of  the  living  and  put  to  death  by  every  mode 
of  torture  for  the  Unity  of  God  1  Yet  we  thought  that  all  this 
was  devised  against  them  on  account  of  their  own  transgressions ; 
but  it  was  not  so  ;  the  stroke  fell  upon  Israel  for  the  transgres- 
sion of  my  peojiile.  Chastisement  and  death  are  here  spoken  of 
as  a  stroke;  because  one  who  is  'stricken*^'  is  counted  as  dead,  as 
Aaron  speaking  of  Miriam  (Num.  xii.  12)  says,  'Let  her  not  be 
as  one  dead !'    By  the  expression  'my  people,'  the  prophet  means 

'  Viz. after  slaughter:  the  term  is  applied  to  denote  the  tremulous  muscu- 
lar movements  which  sometimes  exhibit  themselves  in  an  animal  immediately 
after  it  has  been  slain. 

»  Namely,  with  leprosy  ;  see  p.  212. 


254  YIZHAQ  TROKI,  [liii.  9- 

to  indicate  that  each  separate  nation  will  ubc  this  language,  in 
order  to  indicate  that  the  stroke  came  upon  Israel  for  its  trans- 
gression and  not  for  theirs.  '  Israel  was  ready  to  resign  himself 
to  death  and  burial  for  the  sake  of  the  divine  Unity,  as  it  is 
written  (Ps.  xliv.  23),  'For  thy  sake  we  are  slain  all  the  day 
long ; '  we  were  incessantly  framing  fraudulent  devices  against 
him  to  put  him  to  death,  just  as  the  wicked  are  put  to  death  for 
their  crimes :  similarly  we  were  in  the  habit  of  murdering  tloe 
wealthy  by  various  contrivances  for  the  sake  of  his  riches ;  and 
even  the  poor  Israelite  was  invested  by  us  with  the  reputation 
of  being  rich,  and  tortured  cruelly  for  the  purpose  of  forcing 
him  to  disclose  where  his  money  was  secreted.  And  all  this 
occurred,  altliouyh  he  had  done  no  violence;  he  was  not  put  to 
death  for  any  wickedness  that  he  had  committed,  but  simply  in 
order  that  we  might  secure  his  wealth;  and  also  because  he 
would  not  confess  to  our  lying  belief,  nor  by  ackaowledging  it 
utter  deceitfulness  with  his  mouth,  at  a  time  when  a  single  word 
— though  spoken  in  deceit,  and  though  his  heart  might  not  be 
in  accordance  with  the  declaration  of  his  lips — would  have  been 
sufficient  to  release  him  from  any  one  of  the  varied  forms  of 
death  to  which  we  might  have  sentenced  him.  "  Since,  then,  he 
thus  maintained  his  adherence  to  the  divine  law,  and  evinced 
his  willingness  to  meet  death  under  whatever  form,  we  can 
assign  no  cause  for  his  pains  and  calamities  in  captivity,  except 
that  God  was  in  this  way  pleased  to  bruise  and  sicken  him,  in 
order  to  humble  and  try  him,  that  it  might  be  '  well  with  him  at 
his  latter  end,'  i.  e.  at  the  time  of  redemption,  as  we  now  see 
to  be  the  case  :  if  therefore  his  soul  gives  itself  in  place  of  a 
trespass-offering  (as  the  prophet  said,  made  his  grave  with  the 
wicked),  as  a  reward  for  doing  this,  he  will  see  seed  (i.  e.  much 
seed,  just  as  stature,  Num.  xiii.  32,  means  large  statui'e) ;  and 
this  is  what  Zechariah  alludes  to  when  he  says  (x.  8),  '  I  will 
hiss  to  them,  and  gather  them,  and  they  shall  increase  as  they 
have  increased /and  (verse  10),  'I  will  bring  them  into  the  land 
of  Gilead  and  Lebanon,  and  place  shall  not  be  found  for  them;' 


-liii.  12.]  YIZHAQ   TROKl.  255 

and  again  (Ezek.  xxxvi.  37),  'I  will  increase  them  with  men  like 
a  flock.'  In  the  same  way  it  is  promised  that  he  shall  lengthen 
days,  as  it  is  said  in  this  very  book  (Ixv.  22),  'As  the  days  of  a 
tree  shall  be  the  days  of  my  people ;'  and  by  Zechariah  (viii.  4), 
'  Each  with  his  staff  in  his  hand  for  very  age.'  If  so,  then,  tlie 
pleasure  of  the  Lord,  who  had  thus  bruised  Israel  in  exile  in 
order  to  do  good  to  him  at  the  time  of  redemption,  is  that  he 
shall  prosper  xvith  his  hand:  for  God  will  multiply  him,  and  bless 
him  exceedingly,  as  it  is  written,  'And  he  will  do  thee  good, 
and  multiply  thee  above  thy  fathers'  (Deut.  xxx.  5). — Here  the 
words  of  the  Gentiles  terminate,  and  the  Almighty  commences 
speaking.  "  For  the  travail  of  his  soul,  which  he  endured  in 
the  captivity,  he  will  receive  a  goodly  recompense,  which  he  will 
see,  and  be  satisfied  therewith ;  as  also  by  his  knowledge  of  me 
(as  it  is  written,  Jei'.  xxxi.  33,  'All  shall  know  me,  from  the 
smallest  to  the  greatest'),  the  righteous,  i.e.  my  servant  Israel, 
will  justify  many  nations,  as  it  is  said  (Mic.  iv.  2), '  He  will  teach 
us  of  his  ways  and  we  will  walk  in  his  paths  :'  and  he  in  his 
righteousness  will  bear  the  iniquity  of  many  nations,  for  through 
it  there  will  be  peace  and  prosperity  in  the  world,  including 
even  the  Gentiles.  ^^  Therefore  I  will  give  him  his  lot  and  por- 
tion with  my  servants,  the  famous  ones  of  the  earth,  i.  e.  with 
the  patriarchs  and  holy  prophets ;  by  this  is  meant  his  spiritual 
welfare,  which  is  placed  above  the  temporal ;  and  W2'\  must  be 
explained  as  Gen.  xxv.  23,  'The  greater  shall  serve  the  smaller.' 
Afterwards,  he  will  enjoy  temporal  welfare,  in  accordance  with 
what  follows,  and  the  mighty  lie  shall  divide  as  spoil,  where  the 
'  mighty '  are  Gog  and  Magog  and  the  nations  accompanying 
them,  who  will  come  up  to  fight  against  Jci-usalem  and  there 
perish  themselves  by  various  forms  of  death,  as  a  punishment 
for  those  which  they  had  inflicted  upon  Israel.  And  so  it  is 
written,  '  I  will  plead  against  him  with  pestilence  and  with 
blood ;  and  an  overflowing  rain,  and  great  hailstones,  fire,  and 
brimstone  will  I  rain  upon  him  and  upon  the  many  peoples 
that  are  with  him'  (Ezek.  xxxviii.  22).  And  after  this  Israel  will 


256  yiZHAQ  TROKi.  [liii.  12. 

divide  tlieir  spoil  and  take  of  their  wealth,  in  return  for  what 
they  had  taken  from  liim  during  the  captivity ;  as  Scripture 
says,  'And  they  shall  spoil  those  that  spoiled  them,  and  rob 
those  that  rohbed  thenj'  (Ezek.  xxxix.  10);  and,  'The  wealth  of 
all  the  heathen  shall  be  gathered  together,  gold  and  silver  and 
apparel  in  great  abundance'  (Zech.  xiv.  14).  This,  then,  will  be 
Israel's  recompense  for  his  readiness  to  meet  death  at  the  hands 
of  the  heathen ;  their  soul  shall  be  for  his  soul,  and  their  wealth 
for  his  wealth  (which  they  had  robbed  him  of),  because,  as  the 
prophet  says,  he  poured  out  (n"iy  as  Gen.  xxiv.  20)  his  soid  to  die, 
and  because  he  was  numbered  ivith  tlw  transgressors  (as  is  said 
above,  'And  gave  his  grave  with  the  wicked'),  viz.  through  the 
Gentiles  holding  him  in  the  estimation  of  an  evil-doei-,  hated  by 
God.  And  therefore  there  would  be  given  him  an  ample  share 
in  that  rich  and  copious  portion  reserved  for  those  that  fear  the 
Lord,  and  esteem  his  name,  as  did  the  holy  patriarchs  and  many 
also  of  the  prophets,  the  worthies  of  the  nation.  By  the  clause,^ 
carried  the  sin  of  many,  it  is  signified  that  not  only  was  he  not 
wicked,  as  the  Gentiles  imagined,  but  in  his  righteousness  he 
even  bore  and  carried  the  sin  of  many  among  the  (! entiles,  as  it 
is  said,  'And  their  iniquities  he  will  bear.'  In  like  manner,  he 
used  to  pray  to  God  on  behalf  of  the  Gentile  transgressors  : 
although  they  caused  him  the  gi-eatest  sufferings,  he  nevertheless 
interceded  and  supplicated  for  their  peace  and  the  prosperity  of 
their  kingdoms,  entreating  the  Almighty  to  give  the  rain  of 
their  land  in  its  season,  as  the  inspired  prophet  enjoins,  'And 
seek  the  peace  of  the  city  whither  I  have  led  you  away  captives, 
and  pray  for  it  unto  the  Lord '  (Jer.  xxix.  7) ;  and  our  Rabbis, 
Ho,  thou  that  prayest  for  the  peace  of  the  kingdom f  etc.;  and 
as  we  Jews  repeat  continually  in  our  prayers,  0  our  God,  that 
art  in  heaven,  give  life  and  peace  to  the  King  our  master ;  O 
our  God,  that  art  in  heaven,  give  peace  in  the  earth ;  0  our 
God,  that  art  in  heaven,  give  peace  in  the  kingdom;  0  our  God, 


'  See  Ahhoth,  iii.  2. 


liii,  12.]  YIZHAQ   TROKI.  257 

that  art  in  heaven,  give  dew  and  rain  for  a  blessing  in  chie 
season  upon  the  earth ;  0  our  God,  that  art  in  heaven,  give 
seed  to  the  sower  and  bread  to  the  eater ; — as  it  is  laid  down  in 
the  Order  of  Prayer  according  to  both  the  Spanish,  and  many 
other  uses. 

And  now  our  answer,  and  this  argument  also,  is  completed— 
a  time  answer  in  accordance  with  the  words  of  the  text,  which 
no  one  will  be  able  to  repudiate,  except  such  as  deny  altogether 
the  words  of  the  livins:  God. 


XXXVII.     R.  MOSHEH    EL-SHEIKH. 

LII.  ^^  The  verses  in  this  Parashah  are  difficult  to  fix  or  arrange 
in  a  plain  and  literal  manner,  so  that  the  various  parts,  from  the 
beginning  to  the  end,  may  be  combined  and  connected  closely 
together,  '  the  head  with  the  legs  and  the  inwards  thereof.'  The 
commentators  I  see  going  up  and  down  among  them,  and  yet  nei- 
ther agreeing  in  the  subject  to  which  the  whole  is  to  be  referred, 
nor  disentangling  the  words  upon  any  simple  plan.  I  therefore, 
in  my  humility,  am  come  after  them  ;  not  with  any  sense  of  the 
wisdom  that  I  am  about  to  utter,  but  merely  with  the  object  of 
applying  to  its  elucidation  a  straightforward  method,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  literal  sense  of  the  text,  such  as  ought  to  be 
chosen  by  one  who  would  rightly  imite  the  several  words  and 
periods,  and  determine  what  view  is  legitimate  and  what  not. 
I  may  remark,  then,  that  our  Eabbis  with  one  voice  accept  and 
affirm  the  opinion  that  the  prophet  is  speaking  of  the  King 
Messiah,  and  we  shall  ourselves  also  adhere  to  the  same  view  : 
for  the  Messiah  is  of  com'se  David,  who,  as  is  well  known,  was 
'  anointed,'  and  there  is  a  verse  in  which  the  proi^het,  speaking 
in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  says  expressly,  '  3fy  servant  David 
shall  be  king  over  them  '  (Ezek.  xxxvii.  24).  The  expression  my 
servant,  therefore,  can  be  justly  referred  to  David  :  for  from 
what  is  explicit  in  one  place  we  can  discover  what  is  hidden  or 
obscure  in  anotlier.  Although  now  we  shall  not  call  attention 
to  everything  in  the  text  that  might  deserve  it  (since  much  is 
already  before  the  eyes  of  all),  no  one  will  fail  to  notice,  how 


Hi.  13.]  R.  MOSHEH    EL-SHEIKH,  259 

ill  the  iutroductiou  the  prophet  says  at  once,  Behold  my 
servant  shall  jyrosper,  instead  of  employing  the  j)hrase,  '  Thus 
saith  the  Lord,'  as  at  the  beginning  of  every  other  Parashah. 
Our  Rabbis  say  that  of  all  the  suffering  which  entered  into  the 
world,  one  third  was  for  David  and  the  fathers,  one  for  the  genera- 
tion in  exile,  and  one  for  the  King  Messiah^.  If  we  examine  the 
meaning  of  this  saying,  we  shall  see  that  there  are  punishments 
for  iniquity,  and  also  punishments  of  love,  the  latter  being 
endured  by  the  righteous  for  the  wickedness  of  his  own  genera- 
tion. Now  those  who  do  not  know  how  far  the  reward  of  the 
righteous  really  extends  feel  surprised  at  this,  asking.  Is  it  the 
Lord's  pleasure  that  either  one  man  should  sin,  or  a  whole 
generation  %  and  wondering  whether  it  can  be  true  that  he  will 
be  wroth  with  a  just  and  perfect  man  who  never  sinned,  and 
heap  on  him  the  iniquities  of  all  wrong-doers,  in  order  that  they 
may  rejoice,  and  he,  the  just,  be  pained;  that  they  may  be 
'  stalwart  in  strength,'  while  he  is  stricken  and  smitten ;  that 
they  may  exult  at  his  calamity,  and  mock  during  their  feasts 
at  his  distress,  while  he  is  smitten  for  their  sakes.  In  order 
to  put  an  end  to  the  'fear  from  this  thing,'  God  declares  in 
these  verses  how  far  the  merits  of  those  who  thus  suffer  for  the 
sins  of  their  own  age  extend  their  effects,  adducing  a  proof  from 
the  case  of  the  Messiah  who  bore  the  iniquities  of  the  children 
of  Israel,  '  and  behold  his  reward  is  with  him.'  The  Almighty 
ai'gues  with  Israel  (whom  he  has  hitherto  been  addi'cssing, 
lii.  1 1  f.),  saying  to  them  in  tones  of  love  (and,  like  one  talking 
with  a  beloved  son,  using  the  singular  number) :  Did  I  not 
promise  that  the  Lord  would  go  before  you,  and  the  God  of 
Israel  be  your  rear-ward  1  and  will  ye  not  marvel  that  all  your 
sins  have  not  been  'scoured  and  flooded  away'  to  the  extent 
of  really  desei'ving  such  great  blessings  ?  O  that  we  had  been 
counted  worthy  to  walk  in  affliction,  and  after  that  to  build  for 
ourselves  the  sanctuary  (as  were  those  who  built  the  second 

*  Compare  p.  10 ;  Wiiuschc,  p.  73. 
S  2 


260  R.  MOSHEH    EL-SHEIKH.  [Hi.  13. 

Temple  by  the  permission  of  Cj'rus) :  but  look  and  learn  how 
great  is  the  power  of  tlie  man  who  suffers  for  a  whole  genera- 
tion ;  you  shall  then  see  from  the  exaltation  which  I  sliall  confer 
upon  the  King  Messiah  how  vast  are  the  benefits  of  the  chastise- 
ments of  love  to  him  that  endui-es  them.  Behold  my  servant 
(i.  e.  the  Messiah)  will  pros^per, — for  this  is  the  meaning  of  ^''3^'' 
in  this  passage,  as  i  Sam.  xvii.  14, — and  this  prosperity  of  his 
will  extend  through  four  worlds,  viz.  the  lower  world,  the  world 
of  angels,  the  world  of  stars,  and  the  highest  world  of  all,  in 
each  of  which  the  same  prosperity  will  attend  him.  He  will 
be  hi(]h  in  this  world ;  exalted  in  the  world  of  stars — as  was 
Joshua,  when  he  said, '  Sun,  stand  thou  still  upon  Gibeon,'  etc. 
(Josh.  X.  12);  and  lofty  in  the  world  of  angels,  who  will  'have 
access  to  his  audience '  (for  he  will  not  be  inferior  to  king 
Solomon,  as  the  E-abbis  say  ^,  Why  was  not  Solomon  reckoned 
amongst  those  who  ruled  over  the  world  ?  Because  he  was  king 
over  the  powers  that  are  on  high,  i.  e.  over  the  angels,  as  it  is 
written,  i  Chron.  xxix.  23,  'And  Solomon  sat  on  the  throne  of 
the  Lord  ') ;  exceedingly,  because  prosperity  will  accompany  him 
in  the  uppermost  world  as  well,  in  the  presence  of  God,  according 
to  the  saying  of  the  Rabbis  on  Ps.  ii.  8,  that  he  will  be  '  like  a 
dear  son,  delighting  himself  before  his  Creator  <^ : '  he  says  there- 
fore, Ask  of  me,  etc.,  because  of  the  good  fortune  which  is  to  be 
his  in  each  of  these  four  worlds.  Such  is  the  meaning  of  this 
first  verse  of  the  Parashah,  the  last  four  words  of  which,  as  has 
now  been  explained,  correspond  to  these  four  spheres  of  power. 

Our  Rabbis  say  further,  '  He  shall  be  higher  than  Abraham, 
of  whom  it  is  written  (Gen.  xiv.  22),  "I  raise  high  my  hand  to 
God;"  lifted  up  above  Moses,  of  whom  it  is  written  (Num. 
xi.  17),  "And  they  shall  lift  the  burden  of  the  people  with  thee;" 
and  loftier  than  the  ministering  angels,  of  whom  it  is  said  (Ezek. 
i.  1 8),  "  Their  wheels  were  lofty."  '  It  is  not  without  a  purpose 
that  Abraham,  Moses,  and  the  angels  are  here  mentioned :  though 


^  Thalm.  Bab.,  Mcgillah,  ii^  "^  Compare  Buxt.  s.  v.  NTQn. 


lii.  13.]  R.  MOSHEH    EL-SIIETKH.  2CJ 

to  be  '  lifted  up  above  Moses '  is  indeed  impossible ;  for  whom 
have  we  greater  than  Moses  1  The  Rabbis  sayfl,  on  the  verse 
Gen.  xiv.  17,  that  all  the  nations  of  the  world  agreed  among 
themselves  to  make  Abraham  their  king,  erecting  for  him  a  high 
throne,  and  setting  him  upon  it,  and  then  shouting  before  him, 
Thou  art  our  king  !  Let  us  examine  now  the  meaning  of  this 
Midrash,  according  to  the  method  we  have  prescribed  ourselves. 
He  will  be  higher  than  Abraham  in  the  eai-th ;  for  as  all  nations 
acknowledged  Abraham's  sovereignty  (in  the  mamier  described), 
so,  and  more  also,  will  the  Messiah  be  exalted.  Next,  as  Moses 
ruled  even  in  the  world  of  stars — the  Rabbis  say®  that  for  this 
reason  the  hail,  the  locusts,  and  the  grasshoppers  were  sent  through 
his  instrumentality,  and  that  hence  also  he  is  bidden,  Ex.  ix.  22, 
X.  21,  cf.  x.  12,  to  stretch  out  his  hand  toward  heaven — so,  and 
even  more  fully,  will  the  Messiah  hold  sway  there  likewise  :  this, 
and  this  only,  is  the  meaning  of  the  phrase  loftier  than  Moses; 
it  does  not  imply  that  he  will  be  superior  to  him  in  wisdom  or 
in  prophecy,  nor,  again,  that  at  the  time  alluded  to  Moses  will 
not  in  every  respect  be  the  greater  (indeed  anything  different  from 
this  will  not  be  credited  by  those  who  have  real  knowledge),  but 
only  that  he  will  be  more  exalted  than  Moses  was  previously,  in 
his  own  lifetime.  He  is,  thirdly,  to  be  loftier  than  the  angels, 
according  to  the  text  (Ezek,  i.  18);  for  these  had  'loftiness  and 
fear,^  i.  e.  in  spite  of  their  high  position,  they  still  stood  in  awe 
of  the  Almighty,  not  venturing,  like  the  righteous  one  who 
'  played  before  him,  as  a  son  before  his  father,'  to  make  requests 
of  their  Creator.  Such,  then,  is  the  meaning  of  the  phrase 
lofty  exceedingly  above  live  angels;  for  though  above  we  divided 
the  sentence  into  four  parts,  yet  as  the  Rabbis  do  not  interpret 
sliall  he  high  by  itself,  but  declare  that  he  will  be  high  above 
something  else,  and  similarly  with  each  of  the  two  following 
verbs,  so  the  fourth  part  ('exceedingly')  must  belong  really  to 
the  third,  the  idea  expressed  by  which  it  serves  to  intensify. 

•^  B'rcshith  Eal/bt'i,  c.  24.  *  Shemoth  Rabba,  c.  12, 


263  R.  MOSHEH    EL-SHEIKU.  [Hi. 


14- 


The  whole,  however,  as  I  understand  their  method,  '  goeth  unto 
one  place.'  If  now  we  return  to  the  words  of  the  text,  we  shall 
see  that  what  God  says  to  his  only  son  Israel  is  this,  that  he 
will  prosper  in  four  diffei'ent  worlds.  "  From  what  source, 
however,  does  he  merit  all  this  1  is  it  not  because,  as  many  loere 
astonislied  at  thee  (i.  e.  at  Israel)  in  the  two  desolations  [of  the 
Temple],  so  that  every  one  that  passed  by  '  was  astonished  and 
hissed '  at  the  terrible  disasters  accompanying  the  two  chastise- 
ments  desci'ibed  in  the  Law,  when  even  the  stz-anger  coming 
from  a  far  land,  when  he  saw  the  plagues  of  that  land  and  the 
sicknesses  laid  upon  it,  was  to  hiss  and  ask  in  amazement, 
*  Wherefore  hath  the  Lord  done  thus  ?  what  meaneth  the  heat 
of  this  great  anger  1'  (Dent.  xxix.  22-24.)  According  to  the 
degi'ee  of  their  amazement,  then,  so  was  his  countenance  marred 
from  man,  in  consequence  of  the  magnitude  of  his  sufferings  : 
by  this  expression  the  prophet  means  to  say  that  it  seemed  to  be 
maiTcd  to  those  who  gazed  upon  it ;  for  man  can  never  discern 
in  a  face  the  image  of  God,  but  only  skin  and  flesh  :  the  next 
phrase  also,  and  his  form  from  the  sons  of  men,  has  a  similar 
import,  and  does  not  at  all  imply  that  his  form  was  marred  in 
the  eyes  of  God,  who  seeth  that  which  is  spiritual.  Or  the 
words  may  signify  that;  his  countenance  from  man  was  marred, 
i.  e.  what  was  derived  in  it  from  man,  to  the  exclusion  of 
that  which  was  derived  from  the  Almighty  (viz.  the  image  of 
God);  and,  again,  that  his  form  from  the  sons  of  men  was  dis- 
figured, but  not  what  came  to  him  from  above.  **  As  the  four 
high  prerogatives  assigned  to  him  in  ver.  13  became  his  in  con- 
sequence of  his  sufferings,  so,  through  the  same  instrumentality, 
he  will  sprinkle  many  nations,  i.  e.  by  these  his  deserts  he  will 
'  sprinkle  the  juice  of  them '  (Is.  Ixiii.  3),  that  is,  their  blood, 
which  will  stream  before  him  '  like  a  breach  of  waters.'  And  so 
brilliant  will  be  his  career  before  the  eyes  of  the  heathen,  that 
at  him  kings  will  shut  their  mouth,  thinking  that  none  of  his 
deeds  can  be  adequately  described ;  they  will  therefore  close 
their  lips  and   refrain  from    speaking.     And   all    this  will   be 


-liii.  2.]  E.  AfOSHElI    EL-SHEIKH.  263 

caused  by  tlieir  having  seen  wlmt  had  never  been  told  them;  for 
very  many  predictions  wliicli  had  been  uttered  by  the  prophets 
respecting  events  that  would  happen  to  them,  had  never  reached 
them ;  for  what  the  prophets  spoke  and  wrote  they  did  not 
usually  communicate  to  a  nation  itself,  they  only  heard  of  it  in 
process  of  time  :  but  now  they  see  all  clcaily  accomplished 
l)y  tlie  Messiah.  Hence  also  those  ivho  had  not  heard  of  any 
of  the  deeds  to  be  done  by  him  began  now  to  attend;  for 
when  the  kings  saw  terrible  deeds  of  which  they  had  never 
heard  done  by  the  Messiah,  they  observed  attentively,  in  order 
to  discover  whether  the  matter  was  really  as  it  had  ap})eared  to 
be,  or  not :  for  their  astonishment  was  so  great  that  they  were 
almost  incredulous,  and  looked  closely  and  carefully,  doubting 
whether  even  their  eyesight  had  not  deceived  them. 

LIII.  ^The  Almighty,  however,  says  that  there  is  no  need 
for  surprise  at  tlieir  attitude  of  incredulity  in  presence  of  these 
marvels;  for  who  believed  our  report — the  report,  namely,  which 
we  made  known  to  you  from  heaven,  but  which  the  kings  had 
not  heai-d  of  ?  so  fearful  was  it,  that  in  the  eyes  of  every  one 
who  did  hear  it,  it  was  too  wondi'ous  to  be  true ;  and  wpou 
whom  was  the  arm  of  the  Lord  revealed  as  it  was  upon  the 
King  Messiah  1  The  sum  of  the  whole  is  that  he  obtained  this 
honour  for  himself  owing  to  his  merits  in  endm'iug  for  Israel 
(as  has  been  said)  chastisements  of  love.  ^  The  contents  of  this 
and  the  following  verses  shew  unmistakably  that  they  are  the 
words  of  the  prophet,  as  it  were  insti'ucting  or  guiding  the 
people,  and  not  the  words  of  God:  this  is  plain  both  fi'om 
the  phrase.  We  saw  him,  hut  he  had  no  beauty  that  ive  could 
desire  him,  which  would  not  be  suitable  for  God  to  use  with 
reference  to  himself,  as  also  from  the  two  expressions,  We 
esteemed  him  not,  in  the  next  verse,  and  (verse  4),  Our  sicknesses 
he  carried.  From  the  fact  of  the  Rabbis  expounding  the  pre- 
vious verses  of  the  Messiah,  it  may  be  seen  that  these  speak 
of  the  righteous  who  endures  in  the  present  world  the  chastise- 
ments of  love  ;  and  therefore  I  maintain  that  up  to  this  point 


264  R.  MOSHEH   EL-SHEIKH.  [liii.  2. 

we  have  had  the  words  of  God  announcing  the  greatness  of  the 
Messiah  in  return  for  his  sufferings,  and  designed  to  set  forth 
the  exalted  dignity  of  him  by  whom  those  chastisements  are 
borne.  Here,  however,  tlie  ])i'ophet  seems  to  set  before  us  the 
words  of  Israel  endorsing  the  Divine  declaration,  and  affirming 
in  their  own  persons  its  entire  truth  :  '  The  "  tried  saying  of  the 
Lord," '  they  exclaim,  '  which  he  has  made  known  to  us  con- 
cerning the  King  ilessiah,  has  opened  our  ears  and  removed 
the  blindness  of  our  eyes  ;  we  beheld  a  man,  just  and  perfect, 
bruised  and  degraded  by  suffering,  despised  in  our  eyes,  and 
plundered  verily  before  God  and  man,  while  all  cried,  "  God 
hath  forsaken  him ;"  he  must  surely,  therefore,  we  thought,  be 
"  despised  "  likewise  in  the  eyes  of  the  Almighty,  and  this  is  why 
he  hath  made  him  "an  offscouring  and  refuse"  (Lam.  iii.  45). 
But  now  the  Lord  hath  awakened  our  ear,  and  taught  us  that 
the  chastisements  of  love  are  infinitely  great ;  henceforward, 
then,  will  "  his  strength  be  magnified,"  when  we  see  liim  just, 
and  humble  in  spirit,  stricken,  and  smitten :  for  then  we  shall 
all  agree  in  concluding  that  what  we  had  seen  before  meant 
nothing  excejjt  that  he  was  cari'ying  our  sicknesses ;  and  that 
his  suflferings  were  for  the  protection  of  his  generation.'  Such 
is  the  substance  of  what  the  prophet  puts  into  the  people's 
mouth.  And  first  of  all  they  say,  He  came  up  as  a  sucker,  etc. ; 
i,  e.  we  see  one  who  was  as  a  sucker  with  water  for  it  to  suck 
up,  and  growing  great  and  tall ;  he  was  like  this,  however,  only 
before  him,  viz.  befoi'e  the  Lord  (named  in  verse  i ) ;  for  though 
this  just  and  perfect  sufferer  flourished  and  grew  great  before 
God  in  the  upper  world,  yet  in  the  earth  which  we  see  below, 
he  was  as  a  root  coming  forth  out  of  tJie  dry  earth,  and  not  a 
sucker  (because  there  was  no  water  for  him  to  'suck'  up). 
Being  lowly,  therefore,  in  the  sight  of  our  eyes,  he  was  without 
form  and  comeliness  in  the  world  :  his  form  was  '  darkened '  by 
the  blackness  of  his  sufferings  (cf.  Lam.  iv.  8),  and  'his  own 
leanness  bare  witness  in  his  face;'  neither  had  he  any  beauty 
that  we  could  desire  him  on  account  of  his  righteousness,  but, 


liii.  3.]  R.  MOSIIEII    EL-SHEIKH.  265 

on  the  contrary,  he  was  rejected  in  our  eyes.    (This  is  the  reason 
why  the  1  in  iniDnSI  is  pointed  with  Shiaa'  and  not  with  Pathah, 
because  the  verb  does  not  express  an  actual  fact^)     ^  Not  only, 
however,  was  this  just  one  despised  in  our  eyes,  but,  as  is  now 
said,  his  sense  of  holiness  caused  him  to  be  despised  in  his  own 
eyes,    not    merely    when   he    found    himself   amongst    men    of 
position,  and  in  comparison  with  them  held  himself  to  be  of 
slight   reputation,   but  even  when  forlorn  of  men,   i.  e.   when 
destitute  of  their  society  and  having  no  companion  but  himself. 
Moreover,  in  spite  of  his  holiness,  he  was  a  man  of  pains  and 
broken  hy  sickness  :  now  there  are  two  species  of  sickness,  one 
when  a  man  is  in  pain  but  is  still  able  to  move  about,  the  other 
when  he  is  attacked  by  some  such  disease  as  consumption  or 
fever,  when  he  is  prostrated  upon  his  bed,  a  '  couch  of  infirmity,' 
but  is  free  from  pain ;  in  the  latter  case  he  is  said  to  be  'broken'  by 
sickness,  because  his  complaint  bows  him  down  :  cf.  Jud.  viii.  16. 
Or,  perhaps,  since  instances  happen  in  which  men  suffer  from 
some  disease  and  are  then  cured,  and  then  from  another  and  are 
cured  of  it  likewise,  and  so  with  a  third  or  a  fourth,  whereas, 
on  the  contrary,  they  sometimes  have  a  complaint  which,  being 
constant,  and  more  severe  than  any  of  the  former  kind,  com- 
pletely breaks  them  down,  the  expression  vin  VIT*  may  refer  to 
the  latter,  and  mean  that  the  pei*son  to  whom  it  is  applied  is 
knoxvn  through  some  one  disease,  which,  unlike  the  others  that 
come  and  go,  never  leaves  him.     The  prophet  says  that  both 
these  desci'iptions  of  sickness  unite  against  the  man  hei'e  spoken 
of.     But,  besides  this,  he  was  despised,  also,  in  his  own  eyes  :  it 
is  not  stated  that  he  was  humbled  for  his  pride,  since  in  reality 
men  hid  their  faces  from  him,  not  for  any  favdt  of  his  own,  but 
for  the  iniquity  of  his  generation ;  though  he  himself  (as  the 
words  of  the  text  shew.  And  'twas  as  though  the  face-hiding 
came  from  himself)  looked  upon  the  matter  differently,  ima- 
gining in  his  goodness  and  humility  that  he  must  be  guilty, 

f  The  words  are  not,  '  he  had  no  beauty,  and  we  desired  him,'  but  '  he 
had  no  beauty,  that  we  should  desire  him.' 


266  11.  urosHEH  el-sheikh,  [liii.  4- 

and  was  thus  punished  for  his  sins.  Accordingly  he  was  both 
des2'>ised  in  his  own  eyes,  and  we  esteemed  him  not.  *  Yet  in 
truth  the  cause  of  this  'face-hiding'  lay  not  in  him,  but  in  the 
people ;  for,  as  we  learn  from  the  expression  used  in  the  pre- 
ceding verses,  lie  (Nin)  carried  our  sichiesses,  i.  e.  he  was  ready 
to  carry  them  of  his  own  accord,  like  R.  Eleazar,  the  son  of 
R.  Simeon,  who  said,  'Come  brethren,  come  friends e!'  Again, 
as  '  pain '  was  associated  with  '  sickness '  in  verse  3,  so  here  it  is 
stated  that  he  bore  the  former  as  well,  and  was  not  like  the 
man  who  exclaimed,  'Neither  them,  nor  their  reward ^M'  We, 
however,  thought  that  he  was  not  bearing  them  of  liis  own 
accord,  but  that  he  was  stricken  and  smitten  of  God,  by  a  judg- 
ment of  retaliation  for  his  iniquities,  and  not  out  of  love,  as 
was  the  case  with  R.  Eleazar.  The  prophet  says  stricken,  with 
allusion  to  the  expression  vin  y1^^  and  smitten,  because  he  had 
at  the  same  time  called  him  JT131N30  tJ'''X :  we  supposed  him 
stricken,  namely,  with  the  strokes  of  men  (i.  e.  through  the 
powers  of  impurity)  which  fall  upon  a  man  as  a  conse- 
quence of  one  of  those  matters  for  which  such  strokes  are 
appointed ;  smitten  of  God  when  afterwards  God  seemed  to  smite 
him,  not  from  any  desire  to  inflict  upon  him  a  chastisement 
of  love,  but  in  virtue  of  his  attribute  of  justice,  because  he  had 
not  repented  of  his  iniquity ;  and  afflicted,  when  last  of  all  (as 
is  stated  in  verse  3 )  he  was  despised  in  his  own  eyes  on  account 
of  the  humiliation  and  affliction  which  had  befallen  him.  Such 
is  the  signification  of  the  three  expressions,  stncken,  smitten  of 
God,  and  afflicted.  ^  It  was  not  so  in  fact,  however  :  it  was 
because  he  was  wounded  for  our  transgressions  that  he  was 
*  broken   by  sickness ; '    and  because  he  was   bruised  for   our 

B  I.  e.  invited  his  friends  to  see  him,  as  though  nothing  were  the  matter  : 
see  Thalm.  Bab.,  Bdhha  M'zi'ah,  87''. 

^  Alluding  to  a  saying  of  R.  Yohanan's  (Thalmud  of  Babylon,  B'rakhoth, 
I'ol.  s''),  who  when  asked  during  an  illness  whether  his  sufferings  were 
pleasant  to  bear  in  view  of  the  reward  tlicy  would  bring  after  them,  replied, 
that  he  found  no  pleasure  either  in  the  sufferings  or  in  their  reward. 


-liii.  6.]  R.  MOSHEH    EL-SHEIKH.  267 

iniquities  that  he  hecame  a  '  man  of  pains '  (for  he  was  stricken 
for  our  'transgressions,'  and  smitten  for  our  'iniquities');  and 
he  was  '  afflicted '  with  poverty,  because — and  this  is  the  chief 
reason  for  which  he  was  '  despised ' — the  chastisement  of  owr 
feax^e  ivas  u]}07i  him :  his  being  wounded  and  bruised  for  our 
iniquities  had  merely  the  negative  effect  of  rescuing  us  from 
punishment ;  in  order  for  us  to  enjoy  positive  peace  and  pros- 
perity, further  sufferings  were  needed,  and  these  consisted  in  his 
being  '  afflicted '  with  poverty.  To  express  this,  it  is  said  that 
the  chastisement  of  our  jjeace  %vas  upon  him  :  and  it  was  well  that 
this  additional  chastisement  should  rest  upon  liim ;  for  while  the 
direct  consequences  of  our  sins  had  been  avei'ted  by  his  sickness 
and  stripes,  something  still  was  needed  in  order  to  confer  peace 
upon  us.  Or  the  sense  of  the  passage  may  be  as  follows  :  If 
he  had  '  carried  our  sicknesses,'  it  would  have  been  sufficient  to 
remove  misfortune  from  us,  but  not  to  procure  us  prosperity  : 
but  we  do  possess  prosperity ;  does  it  not  follow  then  that  he 
must  already,  at  some  time  or  other,  have  suffered  sickness, 
being  made  sick  (i?SnD)  for  owr  transgressions,  that  pain  must 
have  lighted  on  him,  being  bruised  for  our  iniquities,  and  that 
his  calamities  were  pi'olonged,  because  the  chastisement  of  our 
'peace  was  upon  him,  and  in  order  to  benefit  us  positively  1 — 
for,  so  far  as  the  mere  removal  of  suffering  was  concerned,  we 
were  long  ago  healed  by  his  stripes.  ^  All  we  like  sheep  had 
gone  astray — like  sheep  which  all  follow  after  their  leader,  so 
that  if  the  leader  strays,  they  all  stray  with  him,  because  of 
the  unity  of  the  whole  flock ;  as  the  Rabbis  say,  '  When  the 
shepherd  is  angry  with  his  flock,  he  makes  their  leader  blind  *,' 
The  prophet  says,  Would  that  only  one  had  gone  astray,  and 
that  only  the  unity  of  the  rest  had  led  them  after  him  !  for 
union,  though  it  be  with  something  evil,  is  a  good,  as  it  is  written 
(Hos.  iv.  17),  'Ephraim  is  joined  unto  idols;  let  him  alone;'  here, 
however,  there  is  in  two  respects  a  difference  for  the  worse  :  for 

'  Thalni.  Bab.,  Babha  Qama,  52". 


268  R.  MOSHEH    EL-SHEIKH.  [lili.  7- 

iii  a  flock  ouly  one  goes  astray,  but  in  our  case,  as  we  learn  from 
the  expression  '  All  tve  like  sheep,'  there  were  many  straying ;  in 
a  flock  also  the  general  error  results  from  the  uuiteclness  of  the 
whole  body,  but  the  phrase,  ^  Each  turned  to  his  own  way,' 
shews  that  with  us  this  was  not  so,  but  that  it  resulted  fi-om 
the  separate  action  of  each  individual.  Had  it  indeed  been 
otherwise,  our  guilt  (as  the  passage  from  Hosea  indicates) 
would  not  have  been  so  great.  But  see  now  the  mercy  of  God : 
after  we  had  individually  gone  astray,  he  might  have  been 
expected  to  punish  us  individually  likewise  (for  every  man  by 
his  own  sepai-ate  iniquity  creates  an  accuser  to  '  light '  upon  him 
for  the  purpose  of  punishing  him) ;  yet  the  Lord  did  not  look  to 
this,  but  counted  us  as  one  man,  reckoning  up  tlbc  iniquity  of  us 
all  together,  and  catosing  it  to  light  upoii  this  just  one,  who  was 
accordingly  sufiicient  to  bear  the  whole  of  it,  which  would  not 
have  been  the  case  had  each  one's  iniquity  been  reckoned  up 
against  himself.  ''  In  the  B'reshith  Rahhd  k,  the  Rabbis  say, 
There  is  a  '  drawing  nigh '  that  is  for  prayer ;  as  it  is  written 
(i  Kings  xviii.  36),  'And  Elijah  drew  nigh:'  but  although  his 
prayer  [for  rain]  was  heard  before  his  Creator,  yet  his  piety 
prevented  him  from  praying  for  a  removal  of  his  own  calamity, 
or  complaining  of  the  bitterness  of  his  sufferings,  as  he  might 
have  done  had  the  saying,  'Neither  them,  nor  their  reward,'  been 
his  model.  Elijah  resembled  rather  Rabbah,  who,  although 
both  he  and  R.  Hisda  were  men  of  the  greatest  piety,  prayed, 
and  there  came  rain,  and  prayed  again,  and  there  came  rain  ^ ; 
and  yet  in  spite  of  this,  when  all  his  household  were  enduring 
the  '  sixty  pains '  [felt  by  the  tooth  that  hears  its  neighbour 
eating,  and  has  nothing  itself'"],  he  did  not  pray  for  any 
alleviation  of  his  sufferings.  In  like  manner  the  prophet  says 
here  that  the  prayer  of  this  just  one  was  heard  by  God,  that 
when  he  drew  near  (^J3)  for  the  purpose  of  praying,  he  was  at 


X  C.  93.  1  Thalm.  Bab.,  Taanith,  24". 

«»  Thalm.  Bab.,  Bahlixi  Qdma,  92>>. 


-liii.  9.]  R.  MOSHEH    EL-SHEIKIf.  269 

once  ansivered,  even  without  openimj  his  mouth  (as  in  the 
promise,  '  Before  they  cry  I  will  answer  them,'  Ixv.  24)  :  still, 
liowevei*,  in  the  endurance  of  injury  done  to  his  pci-son  he  was 
as  a  sheej)  led  to  the  slaughter,  and  in  loss  of  his  substance,  like 
a  lamb  ivhich  before  her  shearers  is  dumb,  insomuch  that  he 
opened  not  his  mouth  to  entreat  that  even  one  of  his  troubles 
might  be  removed  from  him  (for  he  rather  rejoiced  in  them), 
or  to  exclaim,  '  Neither  them,  nor  their  reward,'  ^  While  he 
was  yet  alive,  he  was  our  protector ;  and  noAV  that  he  is  dead, 
he  was  taken  taSB'ClSI  "ixyiO  :  i.  e.  because  of  the  shutting  up  "  of 
rain  that  was  to  ensue,  and  because  of  judgment  to  come,  he  was 
taken  away.  For,  though  he  protected  it  before,  yet  inasmuch 
as  his  generation  will  not  repent  of  its  iniquity  which  had 
caused  the  judgment  and  the  drought,  their  fate  will  be  like 
that  which  we  read  of  in  the  Midrash  Ne'ldm,  where  R.  Aha 
of  Caphartarsha,  when  he  would  avert  the  plague,  was  told 
from  heaven  that  he  could  avail  nought,  for  sinfulness  still  lay 
upon  the  people,  and  he  must  therefore  amend  them  by  causing 
them  to  repent  and  devote  themselves  assiduously  to  the  Law. 
In  the  same  way,  the  prophet  exclaims  here.  As  for  his  genera- 
tion, woidd  that  some  one  ivould  declare  to  them  how  it  was  cut 
off  from  the  land  of  life  for  the  iniquity  which  the  just  one 
had  before  averted,  because  they  did  not  repent.  Hitherto,  he 
means  to  say,  this  just  one  had  been  stricken  for  the  people's 
transgression  ;  but  henceforward  the  stroke  would  be  upon  them- 
selves, for  there  would  be  no  one  else  to  be  smitten  for  them. 
It  is  possible,  from  his  use  of  the  singular  '  transgression,'  that 
Isaiah  means  to  allude  to  their  sin  in  supposing  that  he  had 
died  for  his  own  iniquity,  and  in  not  having  been  brought 
themselves  by  his  death  to  repentance.  "'^^  These  vei-ses  also  are 
all  of  them  hard,  and  difficult  to  fix  the  sense  of,  though  we 
shall   not  touch  on  everything  which  might  be  noticed.     Our 


"  Compare  the  use  of  ii'i"  in  Deut.  xi.  17,  i  Kings  viii.  35. 


270  R.  MOSHEH   EL-SHEIKH.  [liii.  9. 

Rabbis,  I  see,  have  in  two  places  o  expounded  verse  1 2  of 
Moses  our  master,  each  '  Midrash '  possessing  its  ovm  particular 
features ;  and  we  may  at  least  admit  that  the  passage  does 
allude  to  him,  though  any  one  adopting  this  opinion  is  bound 
to  explain  what  connexion  subsists  between  the  verse  relating  to 
Moses  and  those  which  precede  it.  I  think  myself  that  pro- 
perly these  refer  to  him  likewise :  after  having  stated  that  the 
just  one  did  good  to  his  age,  not  only  during  his  lifetime,  by 
carrying  their  sicknesses,  but  also  in  his  death,  when  because  of 
drought  and  judgme7it  he  was  taken  out  of  the  world  in  order  to 
make  atonement  for  them,  the  prophet  now  proceeds  to  ask,  AVill 
not  the  heart  of  man  '  be  embittered '  when  it  reflects  that  for 
the  sufferings  endured  in  this  present  life,  the  just  one  ought 
at  least  not  to  miss  enjoying  elsewhere  the  reward  for  his  obe- 
dience to  the  Law  and  the  Commandment ;  whereas  by  dying 
for  his  generation  he  will  be  cut  off  from  the  Law  and  the 
Commandments,  and  so  debarred  fi-om  happiness  both  in  this 
world  and  in  that  which  is  to  come  1  He  therefore  says.  And  he 
made  his  grave  with,  the  wicked,  i.  e.  I  will  shew  you  an  instance 
of  this  in  the  chief  of  all  the  prophets,  and  the  choicest  of  all 
creation,  who,  by  still  suffering  after  his  death,  endured  a  heavier 
penalty  than  others  who  had  suffered  for  their  generation  :  for 
he  '  made  his  grave  with  the  wicked,'  i.  e.  Moses,  who,  as  our 
Eabbis  say  p,  was  buried  away  from  the  Promised  Land,  together 
with  the  wicked  ones  who  died  in  the  wilderness :  for  these 
were  unworthy  to  enter  into  the  world  to  come,  had  not  JIoscs 
borne  the  disgrace  of  being  buried  by  their  side,  in  order  that 
he  might  bring  them  into  it  with  himself.  And  we  cannot  be 
wrong  in  interpreting  the  '  wicked '  here  of  those  who  perished 
in  the  wilderness  for  the  sin  of  the  spies ;  for  the  Rabbis  them- 
selves explain  he  was  numhered  with  the  transgressors  (verse  12) 
similarly.  Moses  was  not,  however,  buried  solely  with  these : 
in  the  wilderness  rested  also  Qorah,  who  was  'rich,'  with  all 

°  Above,  pp.  8, 10.  I'  Sot  ah,  lif. 


liii.  10.]  R.  MOSHEH    EL-SHEIKH.  271 

tliose  who  perished  with  him,  when  they  complained  that  Moses 
and  Aaron  had  killed  the  people  of  the  Lord  (Num.  xvii.  6) ; 
with  all  these  Moses  made  his  gi-avc,  in  order  to  bring  them 
likewise  into  the  future  world.  For  it  is  well  known  that  even 
Qorah  and  hia  deaths,  i.  e.  those  who  died  in  his  cause,  will  all 
rise  up  with  him ;  since,  as  our  Rabbis  say  i,  it  follows  certainly 
from  the  words  of  Hannah's  prayer,  *  The  Lord  bringeth  down 
to  the  Underworld,  and  bringeth  up'  (i  Sam.  ii.  6),  that  Qorah 
will  return  and  come  up  from  the  Underworld,  and  a  fortiori, 
those  who  perished  with  him,  and  in  fact  the  whole  generation 
of  the  wilderness.  The  prophet  appeals  thus  to  a  known  case : 
7ie,  i.  e.  Moses,  made  his  grave  ivith  the  tvicked,  for  he  was  buried 
in  profane  ground  in  order  to  bring  them  in  with  him  [into  the 
future  world],  and  that,  not  only  with  the  generation  of  the 
wilderness,  but  also  with  the  rich  [viz.  Qorah]  in  his  deatJis — 
amongst  those,  that  is,  who  perished  with  him — in  order  to  bring 
them  in  likewise,  because  he  had  done  no  violence,  like  those  who 
perished  in  the  desert,  which  alone  might  have  caused  him  to  be 
left  behind,  neither  was  there  any  guile  in  his  mouth,  when  he 
said, '  But  if  the  Loi'd  create  a  new  thing,'  etc.  (Num.  xvi.  30) ;  in 
a  word,  he  sinned  neither  with  the  disbelieving  Israelites,  nor  in 
anything  that  he  uttered  in  the  matter  of  Qorah ;  on  the  con- 
trary, he  acquiesced  for  their  advantage  in  the  indignity  of 
being  buried  away  from  the  Promised  Land.  ^^  But  you  will 
ask,  Why  should  God  do  these  two  things,  both  bruising  and 
sickening  the  just  one  dui-ing  his  life  for  the  iniquity  of  his 
generation,  and  then  cutting  him  off  from  the  world  on  account 
of  its  sin  1  the  Almighty  can  have  no  concern  lest  vexation  should 
cause  him  to  sin.  To  meet  this,  the  prophet  continues  :  You 
know,  indeed,  that  the  Lord  was  pleased  to  bmise  and  sicken 
him  for  the  iniquity  of  his  generation ;  yet  afterwards  if  his 
so^d  is  prepared  to  die,  and  thereby  to  make  itself  a  trespass- 
offering  on  their  behalf,  he  will  no  longer  feel  the  trial,  but 

1  SanJicdrin,  log^. 


272  E.  MOSHEH    EL-SHEIKIT.  ^1111.11- 

rather  rejoice;  for  God  will  comfort  him  with  other  words, 
sajnng,  He  shall  see  seed,  shall  lengthen  days :  he  will  even 
devote  himself  to  the  Law  and  the  Commandments  and  prosper 
(which  is  what  is  meant  by  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord  shall 
prosper  in  Ms  Juincl),  because  there  is  no  disannulling  of  the  Law 
in  the  chastisements  of  love  (which  are  what  are  sent  to  protect 
an  age  fi'om  punishment)  :  he  will  thus  be  blessed  both  in  this 
world  and  in  that  which  is  to  come.  "  God  now  speaks, 
adding  a  further  promise  to  the  prophet's  words.  For  the  travail 
of  his  soul,  etc.  There  is  a  saying  of  the  Rabbis  ^  on  the  verse, 
Prov.  xxxi.  25,  'And  she  laugheth  at  the  future,'  that  at  the  time 
when  the  just  are  taken  out  of  the  world  they  are  shewn  their 
reward,  their  soul  is  satisfied,  and  they  themselves  then  fall 
asleep ;  and  this,  is  what  is  written  in  the  same  place  that  the 
soul  of  the  just  suffers  hardship,  because  it  can  no  longer  in  the 
present  world  pursue  studiously  the  practice  of  the  Law,  and 
his  body  suffers  hardship,  because  it  must  go  and  decay  in  the 
grave.  Therefore  the  Almighty  shews  each  man  how  his  soul 
will  reap  satisfaction  for  all  that  he  has  done  (and  this  is  the 
meaning  of  '  their  soul  is  satisfied '),  and  how  his  body,  for 
what  he  has  enjoyed,  will  be  left  as  one  asleep  (and  this  is  the 
meaning  of  'they  themselves  will  fall  asleep').  And  so  it  is 
said  here  :  Let  not  the  owner  of  this  soul  feel  vexation  at  dying 
for  the  iniquity  of  his  generation,  alleging  that  it  was  his  desire 
to  live  longer  in  order  to  satisfy  himself  with  further  acts  of 
merit :  will  he  not,  for  the  travail  of  his  soul,  wherewith  he 
laboured  unto  the  day  of  his  death,  when  he  is  taken  away,  see 
something  which  will  satisfy  him  ?  hy  his  knowledge — or  will — 
I  promise  that  the  just  one,  i.  e.  my  servant,  shall  justify  many, 
and  that  he  shall  bear  their  iniquities.  ^^  For  T  will  divide  him 
a  portion  with  the  many,  that  he  may  receive  a  portion  in  the 
world  to  come  with  the  many  who  by  his  means  are  meet  to 
receive  a  reward  for  their  sufferings  :   and  because  he  after- 

'  BWeahiih  Mabba,  c.  62. 


-liii.  12.]  R.  MOSHEH   EL-SHEIKH.  273 

wards  died  for  the  iniquities  of  his  generation,  therefore  with 
the  mighty,  the  patriarchs  and  those  like  them,  he  will  divide 
spoil,  because  he  poured  out  his  soul  to  die  for  the  sake  of  Israel, 
and  also  because  he  was  numbered  with  the  transgressors ;  for 
people  said  when  they  saw  his  sufferings  that  he  was  smitten 
of  God  for  his  sins,  and  classed  him  with  the  transgressors. 
This  he  knew,  yet  went  on  enduring,  and  carried  this  sin 
of  many,  not  caring  to  be  vexed  with  them,  but,  on  the 
contrary,  interceding  with  the  Holy  One  for,  i.  e.  on  behalf 
of,  the  transgressors — those,  namely,  who  spoke  thus  of  him, 
not,  like  some,  from  ignorance,  but  from  actual  malice.  Or  the 
sense  of  the  text  may  be  that  in  his  lifetime,  in  consequence 
of  the  sufferings  he  will  experience,  he  will  see  seed,  etc.  :  and 
therefore  by  his  knoivledge,  i.  e.  in  accordance  with  his  will,  the 
just  one,  i.  e.  ony  servant,  will  justify  many  and  bear  all  their 
iniquities  without  solicitude,  and  without  inquiring  whether  it 
is  not  a  strange  thing  to  endure  distress  for  the  sake  of  others 
after  death.  For  if  this  be  the  case,  why  did  Moses  our 
master  endure,  for  the  sake  of  those  who  perished  in  the 
wilderness,  to  be  buried  with  the  wicked  in  a  foreign  land? 
But  there  is  no  real  difficulty  :  'on  account  of  this  very 
humiHation,  I  shall  multiply,'  says  the  Almighty,  '  his  reward  ; 
for  /  shall  divide  him  a  portion  with  the  many,  the  whole  of 
their  merits  will  attach  themselves  to  him,  and  I  shall  allot 
him  an  equal  portion  for  all  these,  as  well  as  for  his  own. 
Moreover,  with  all  the  mighty,  i.  e.  with  the  chiefs  and  wise 
men  of  each  generation  who  teach  the  law  to  every  successive 
age,  he  will  divide  spoil,  and  share  their  reward  with  them.' 
And  do  not  wonder,  because  this  may  seem  excessive  measure 
for  him  to  receive  :  had  it  not  been  for  him,  they  would  never 
have  entered  into  the  world :  did  not  Moses  '  pour  out  his  soul 
to  die,'  when  he  '  put  his  soul  into  his  hand,'  saying,  '  But  if 
not — blot  me,  I  pray  thee,'  etc.  (Ex.  xxxii.  32),  where  he 
expresses  his  willingness  to  die  in  their  stead  ?  Moses  also  was 
on  their  account  'numbered  with  the  transgressors;'  for  God 

T 


274  11.  MOSHEII    EL-SHEIKH.  [liii.  12. 

said,  '  How  long  refuse  ye  to  keep  my  statutes  and  my  ordi- 
nances V  (Ex.  xvi.  28),  classing  him  thereby  with  men  who  had 
profaned  the  Sabbath,  as  our  Rabbis  say**,  For  the  sake  of 
one  leaf,  a  whole  branch  is  often  injured  ;  i.  c.  on  account  of  the 
wicked,  the  righteous  is  reviled.  Accordingly,  it  is  said  that 
'  he  was  numbered  with  them,'  i.  e.  he  felt  no  anxiety  in  having 
given  his  soul  for  them,  and,  besides  this,  that  '  he  carried  the ' 
sin  of  many,'  as  God  said  to  him,  'Go,  get  thee  down'  (Ex. 
xxxii.  7),  as  though  to  say,  Descend  from  all  thy  greatness, 
because  Israel  has  sinned ;  but  still,  in  spite  of  this,  '  he  made 
intercession  for  the  transgressors,'  because  in  every  place  that 
Israel  transgressed  he  interceded  for  them.  And  this  is  the 
prophet's  meaning  when  he  writes.  And  he  carried  the  sin 
of  many,  and  made  intercession  for  the  transgressors. 

*  Tlialm.  Bab.,  Babha  Qama,  92".     Compare  Buxtorf,  s.  v.  N2T3. 


XXXVIII.     R.  SH'LOMOH    LEVI. 

Says  Sh'lomoh,  son  of  the  honourable  and  exalted  R.Yizhaq, 
of  the  house  of  Levi  (may  the  merciful  God  preserve  and  deliver 
him !) :  Throughout  this  prophecy,  all  the  commentators  exert 
their  utmost  upon  its  interpretation,  and  are  at  no  small  variance 
respecting  the  import  of  it.  I  myself  also,  '  with  the  latter 
ones,'  have  had  a  similar  experience ;  I  have  laboured  hard 
many  years,  and  even  now  '  my  witness  is  in  heaven,  and  my 
record  in  the  highest,'  that  the  thirst  of  my  desire  has  not 
been  satisfied  with  what  the  net  of  my  speculation  has  brought 
up  for  me  out  of  the  springs  which  extend  themselves  at  the 
foundations  of  their  writings.  He  who  would  have  at  his  com- 
mand the  whole  multitude  of  divergent  opinions  respecting  it, 
must  apply  himself  to  the  commentary  of  the  blessed  Don 
[Yizhaq  Abarbauel],  and  to  the  excellent  words  which  he  has 
uttered.  To  me,  however,  who  am  'aftlicted  and  of  a  broken 
spirit,'  the  object  of  the  prophet  seems  to  be  to  describe  in 
general  the  varied  forms  of  suffering  to  which  the  righteous  are 
exposed,  and,  after  having  done  this,  to  exhibit  to  us  in  par- 
ticular how  they  all  ultimately  result  in  the  greater  perfection 
of  the  sufferer  :  he  accordingly  declares  that  the  man  who  is 
perfect  in  theory  (which  is  what  he  means  by  7^31?''')  will  also  be 
perfect  in  practice,  because  he  will  be  God's  servant,  i.  e.  will  be 
one  who  performs  his  commandments.  In  other  words,  his 
meaning  is  this :  My  servant  who  obeys  my  commands,  not  as 
though  they  were  merely  human  precepts  to  be  learnt  by  I'ote 
(Is.  xxix.  13),  but  with  intelligence   and  reason,  will  assuredly 


276  R.  sh'lomoh  LEVI.  pii,  liii. 

be  high  and  exalted  and  lofty  exceedingly.  By  this  he,  perhaps, 
intends  to  say  that  he  will  be  elevated  above  all  the  worlds. 
In  reference  to  his  elevation  above  the  lower  world,  he  says, 
/t€  will  he  high;  and  this  is  possibly  what  the  Kabbis  meant 
when  they  said, '  He  will  be  higher  than  Abraham/  for  Abraham 
called  himself  'dust  and  ashes'  (Gen.  xviii.  27).  Alluding  to 
the  intermediate  world,  he  says,  and  exalted,  viz.  above  Moses; 
for,  according  to  the  Cabbalists,  the  atti-ibute  of  Moses  is  called 
*  heaven,'  and  of  him  the  words  were  spoken,  '  Thou  didst  go  up 
on  high'  (Ps.  Ixviii.  19);  accordingly  the  Rabbis*  tell  of  the 
numerous  times  that  Moses  went  up  into  the  mount.  And, 
alluding  to  the  world  of  angels,  the  prophet  continues,  and  lofty. 
In  addition  to  this,  however,  the  Kabbis  mean  by  theii'  Midrash 
to  express  in  what  way  such  a  man  is  perfected  in  the  three 
essentials  of  the  faith  :  he  is  high  through  the  sufficiency  of  God 
declared  to  him  by  Abraham,  exalted  through  the  law  from 
heaven  delivered  by  Moses  our  master,  and  lofty  through  that 
providence  which,  as  Maimonides^  has  remarked,  may  be  shewn 
to  exist  by  reason  :  these  are  they  that '  sit  first  in  the  kingdom, 
and  behold  the  king's  face'  (Esth.  i.  14),  being  the  constant 
objects  of  his  providential  care  ;  indeed,  some  hold  that,  when 
Onqelos  interprets  "'3D  ('my  face,'  Ex.  xxxiii.  23)  by  that  tvhich  is 
before  me,  he  means  to  allude  to  the  angels.  Or  high  may  allude 
to  the  perfect  manner  in  which  his  private  conduct  is  guided, 
exalted  to  his  behaviour  in  public  towards  other  men,  and  lofty 
to  the  theoretical  principles  which  regulate  both.  Our  Rabbis, 
in  the  Midrash  Tanhuma,  have  expounded  the  verse  of  the 
King  Messiah,  saying,  '  He  shall  be  higher  than  Abraham,' 
etc.  :  but  although  the  righteous  Don  [Yizhaq  Abarbanel]  has 
given  a  correct  explanation  of  this  Midrash,  it  appears  to  me 
that  its  meaning  is  rather  this,  that,  in  spite  of  all  Abraham's 
nobility  of  character,  the  Messiah  will  be  more  noble   still :  for 

»  Thalm.  Bab.,  SanJiedrln,  iii'^. 

•>  Guide  des  Erjar^s,  iii.  130  ff.  (ed.  Munk). 


lii,  liii.]  11.  sh'lomoh  levi.  277 

although  Abraham  sware  that  he  would  not  take  *  from  a  thread 
even  to  a  shoe  latchet'  (Gen.  xiv.  23),  yet  the  same  verse  indicates 
a  deficiency  in  his  nobility,  since  he  >3hould  not  have  added, 
'  Lest  thou  say,  I  have  made  Abraham  rich.'  In  the  same  way, 
the  'noble's  daughter'  (Cant.  vii.  i)  is  said  to  be  the  daughter  of 
Abraham  ;  and  the  '  nobles  of  the  people  are  gathered  together, 
even  the  people  of  the  God  of  Abraham'  (Ps,  xlvii.  10)  :  accord- 
ingly the  attribute  of  benevolence  was  granted  to  Abraham  for  a 
possession.  The  Messiah  will  also  be  more  patient  than  Moses, 
who  was  '  exceeding  meek,  above  all  the  men  which  were  upon 
the  face,  of  the  earth'  (Num.  xi.  3);  but  not  more  so  than  the 
Messiah,  for,  in  spite  of  all  his  patience,  he  demanded,  '  Have 
I  conceived  all  this  people?'  etc.,  and,  'Wherefore  hast  thou 
dealt  evilly  with  thy  servant]'  (Num.  x.  12,  ii.)  From  the 
words  'which  are  upon  the  face  of  the  earth,'  we  learn  that 
through  enduring  patiently  he  shewed  that  he  was  sprung  from 
the  earth  :  for  the  beasts,  which  have  no  intelligence  to  govern 
the  material  element  of  their  nature,  display  no  such  patience  : 
on  the  contrary,  as  knowledge  and  intelligence  increases,  so 
patience  increases  likewise.  And  when,  lastly,  they  say,  'and 
loftier  than  the  angels,'  it  must  be  understood  that  if  we  con- 
sider the  verse  (Ezek.  i.  18)  which  they  adduce  in  proof,  the 
subject  spoken  of  is  D^JQIX,  which,  in  the  opinion  of  Maimonides, 
signifies  the  elements,  but  in  that  of  all  other  commentators 
signifies  the  spheres :  this,  however,  is  no  difficulty  to  the  view 
of  the  Rabbis,  for  we  know  that  he  '  maketli  the  winds  his 
messengers,'  how  much  more  then  may  not  these  existences  be 
his  messengers  as  well !  The  meaning  thus  is  that  he  will  have 
power  to  work  signs  and  wonders  by  them,  according  as  he  may 
require ;  and  hence  the  verse  says  that  with  all  their  loftiness 
there  was  coupled  fear,  because  the  righteous  possesses  the  power 
to  discomfit  all  their  array.  Thus  thi'ee  qualities  are  mentioned 
as  belonging  to  him,  each  pre-emiuently  essential  to  a  king  : 
I.  nobility,  2.  patience,  3.  authority.  The  circumstance  that 
Abraham  alone  is  here  named,  and  not  Isaac  and  Jacob,  they 


278  R.  SH'LOMOH   LEVI.  [lii.  13- 

account  for  by  supposing  that  the  latter  are  alluded  to  in  what 
follows,  'Who  art  thou,  0  great  mountain  1'  which  is  imme- 
diately explained  to  mean  that  he  will  be  greater  than  the 
patriarchs ;  for  Isaac,  they  say,  was  great  in  the  prerogative  of 
might  (which  hence  is  named  as  his  special  attribute)  when  he  laid 
his  neck  upon  the  altar  (in  accordance  with  the  saying,  Who  is 
the  man  of  might?  The  man  that  subdues  his  OAvn  natural 
impulse  <=)  :  and  Jacob  was  great  in  the  prerogative  of  truth  ;  as 
Scripture  says,  '  Thou  gavest  truth  to  Jacob'  (Mic.  vii.  20).  "  In 
the  book  ZoJiar,  section  2^'''\^,  the  words  My  servant  shall  have 
understanding  are  referred  to  the  attribute  of  royalty,  which  is 
high,  because  it  receives  its  light  from  intelligence  {T\y^1) ;  and 
exalted,  because  it  partakes  of  the  attribute  of  mercy  belonging 
to  Abraham ;  lofty,  because  of  Isaac ;  exceedingly,  because  of 
Jacob, — the  meaning  being  that  when  the  righteous  man  who  is 
an  inhabitant  of  this  nether  world  is  a  true  worshipper  of  God, 
all  his  acts  are  regulated  by  the  Shekhinah  that  dwelleth  here 
below,  and  by  its  conmiandments ;  and  through  such  service  of 
him  he  is  made  a  servant  of  the  Lord.  ^*  This  verse,  as  well  as 
the  last,  is  supposed  to  be  spoken  by  God  himself,  reminding  the 
prophet  hoiu  many  ivere  astonished  at  him,  when  he  went '  nalced 
and  barefooted'  (Is.  xx.  2),  like  one  despised  and  forlorn,  and 
wondered  whether  he  could  still  possibly  be  the  '  servant '  who 
is  spoken  of,  at  a  time  when  his  countenance  was  marred  beyond 
any  man  (words  describing  his  evil  temperament)  and  his  form 
beyond  the  sons  of  men  (describing  his  defective  constitution). 
The  first  of  these  expressions  refers  to  his  evil  temperament, 
regarded  as  inherent  in  himself;  the  latter  to  his  defective  con- 
stitution, regarded  also  as  derived  from  his  parents  :  in  saying 
beyond  man,  too,  the  prophet  characterizes  the  imperfection  of 
his  nature  in  not  possessing  what  ought  properly  to  have 
belonged  to  him  as  a  man,  and  in  saying  beyond  the  sons  of  men 
he  characterizes  his  imperfections  as  a  member  of  a  species  :  the 

•=  Abhoth,  iv.  i.  ^  Compare  above,  p.  12. 


-liii.  2.]  R.  SII'lOMOH   LEVI.  279 

distinction  here  drawn  is  noticed  in  the  chapter  On  tempera- 
ments in  the  'Canonc,'  q.v.  ^^ Although,  however,  he  is  thus 
cii'cumstanced,  and  although  it  appears  that  the  imperfection  of 
his  physical  constitution  would  preclude  him  naturally  from  pro- 
phesying, or  instructing  others,  nevertheless,  as  regards  both 
quantity  and  quality  he  will  sprinkle,  i.  e.  preach  and  prophesy 
to  many  nations  :  not  unsuccessfully  because  of  him  kings  will 
close  their  mouths,  so  as  not  to  speak  (or,  perhaps,  loill  leap  and 
hasten  to  tell  wondrous  accounts  of  liim,  because  he  will  be  per- 
fecting them  in  knowledge) :  for  what  had  not  before  been  told 
them  they  will  see,  \.  e.  understand  from  him,  and  with  quickened 
faculties  of  apprehension  perceive  xvhat  they  had  not  heard. 
More  precisely  it  should  be  said  that  the  instruction  to  the 
'many  nations'  will  be  concerning  quantity,  and  that  to  the 
great  'kings'  concerning  quality;  for  after  hearing  his  words 
they  will  shut  their  mouths,  inasmuch  as  through  his  agency 
they  will  perceive  by  the  sense  of  sight  things  which  had  never 
been  told  them,  and  apprehend  by  their  intelligence  what  they 
had  never  heard  in  the  company  of  other  men. 

LIII.  ^  The  prophet  now  adduces  a  proof  in  support  of  what 
God  had  said  to  him  :  At  the  beginning  of  our  restoration,  i.  e. 
of  the  restoration  of  the  people  of  Israel,  who,  at  the  time  that 
we  were  making  bricks  in  Egypt,  resembled  men  in  a  condition 
of  degradation,  and  sold  in  perpetuity  as  slaves,  who  believed 
tJie  rumour  or  fame  of  us  which  went  out  into  the  world  ?  and 
for  whose  sake  (''O  ^y)  was  the  stretched  out  arm  and  mighty 
hand  of  the  Lord  revealed  in  Egypt?  ^ Suddenly,  before  the 
Almighty,  the  people  of  Israel  came  up  out  of  the  '  land  of  dryness 
and  the  shadow  of  death,'  i.  e.  out  of  Egypt,  B'IC'31  p3V3,  in 
other  words,  as  though  it  had  long  been  possessed  of  root  and 
branches  (or,  perhaps,  the  sense  may  be  that  it  rose  so  rapidly 
that  the  branches  grew  up  first,  and  its  root  only  extended  itself 
afterwards,  in  consequence  of  being  planted  in  a  dry  soil)  ;  yet 

®  Viz.  of  Avicenna:  see  I.  ii.  i. 


280  E.  Sh'lOMOH   LEVI.  [liii.3- 

owing  to  its  degraded  state,  wc  noticed  that  it  had  no  form  or 
perfection  in  the  ordinary  attributes  of  mankind ;  7ior  conuliness 
in  graceful  acquirements  ;  and  that,  althougli  in  full  possession  of 
strength  and  might  and  all  external  blessings,  it  still  had  no 
beauty  that  we  might  desire  it.  Or  the  prophet  may  mean 
to  say  that  it  had  no  form  or  comeliness,  hut  nevertheless  we 
gazed  upon  it ;  and  that  it  had  no  beauty,  hut  still  ive  desired  it. 
Or,  again,  he  may  mean  that  it  grew  up  like  one  that  sucked 
with  his  face  (for  it  is  impossible  to  suck  from  a  root  which 
is  planted  in  the  dry  soil) — according  to  the  saying  that  a 
man  is  like  an  inverted  tree,  because  all  his  nutriment  is 
sucked  in  from  above,  and  hence  the  countenance  always  looks 
upwards.  The  words  ha^l  no  form,  etc.,  refer  to  the  root — he 
had  no  form,  viz.,  in  the  arrangement  of  his  various  limbs  ;  no 
beauty  in  the  union  between  his  mental  and  his  physical  frame, 
or  in  the  adaptation  of  the  various  parts  of  the  body  to  one 
another;  no  comeliness  in  his  disposition  generally.  ^The 
prophet  here  applies  his  comparison  explicitly,  stating  that  the 
same  will  be  the  case  with  the  man  of  understanding,  i.e. 
the  'servant'  of  the  Lord,  who  is  despised  on  account  of  his  de- 
fective constitution  and  frame, — a  constitution  which  sums  up 
the  defects  of  a  whole  species,  but  does  not  exist  in  individuals, 
since  it  is  not  produced  by  differences  of  subject,  or  climate,  or 
province,  or  country,  etc. — according  to  the  classification  to  be 
found  in  Avicennaf.  He  calls  him  a  man  of  pains,  for  the  blows 
and  bruises  visible  in  him ;  and  because  of  his  evil  temperament 
he  descriljcs  him  as  known  of  sickness,  meaning  to  say  that  his 
condition  was  such  as  not  to  make  it  difficult  to  recognise  him. 
And  because  we  hid  our  faces  from  him,  so  as  not  to  look  upon 
his  pain,  he  rvas  despised  by  us,  and  we  esteemed  him  not.  Or 
the  meaning  may  be  that  he  had  as  it  were  hidden  his  face  from 
him,  i.  6.  from  God  ;  or  that  he,  viz.  God,  had  hidden  his  face 
from  him,  after  his  sufferings  had  left  such  marks  upon  him; 

'  See  '  Canon,'  ibid. 


-liii.  5-]  R.  SH'lOMOH   LEVI.  281 

aud  that  therefore  he  tvas  despised,  but  we  did  not  think  of  him 
even  as  despised — for  he  was  so  insignificant  that  the  tliought  of 
him  did  not  occur  to  us  at  all.  *But  he  was  not  as  we  had 
imagined  him  :  being  perfect  and  without  sin  himself,  he  atoned 
for  all  besides — our  sicknesses,  i.  e.  our  evil  temperament,  he 
carried,  and  oicr  pains,  i.  e.  the  diseases  common  to  us  all, 
he  bare.  The  expression  pains  is  intended  to  include  every 
description  of  pain,  such  as  are  enumerated  in  their  proper 
place ;  and  the  prophet  says  carried,  because  it  was  his  endeavour 
to  take  them  really  upon  himself,  adding  afterwards  hare,  because 
all  the  time  that  they  were  upon  him  he  never  kicked  against 
them.  We,  however,  thought  that  he  had  been  only  justly 
stricken  and  smitten  by  such  pains,  and  afflicted  by  an  evil 
temperament  :  because  '  evil  are  all  the  days  of  the  afflicted' 
(Prov.  XV.  15),  i.e.  of  the  man  who  has  an  evil  temperament,  or, 
as  our  Rabbis  s  say,  who  is  weak.  Or  the  meaning  is,  that  we 
caused  him  to  be  so  thought  of;  or  that,  as  he  was  so  sorely 
stricken,  and,  what  is  more,  afflicted  (the  two  being  in  no  sense 
the  same,  as  is  plain  from  the  words  in  Job  xxxvi.  21,  Tor  this 
thou  hast  chosen  rather  than  affliction  h'),  we  thought  him 
smitten  in  judgment,  and  not  in  love.  ''His  evil  temperament, 
however,  was  produced  by  the  multitude  of  our  transgressions ^ 
and  the  ordinary  human  sicknesses  which  befel  him  were  in 
consequence  of  our  iniquities  :  the  double  expression  is  an  allu- 
sion to  internal  as  well  as  to  external  complaints,  and  as  *  trans- 
gressions' are  more  serious  than  'iniquitiesV  so  are  intei-nal 
complaints  graver  than  those  which  are  external.  The  prophet 
says  that  his  troubles  and  sicknesses  were  for  our  healing  :  his 
sicknesses,  namely,  were  for  the  purpose  of  securing  and  esta- 
blishing our  health,  the  chastisement  uj)on  him  (by  which  is 
signified    his    evil    temperament)    as   for   our    peace,   and   bi/ 

8  See  Thalm.  Bab.,  Bdhha  Botha,  i45»'. 

^  The  bearing  of  the  passage  cited  upon  the  distinction  in  question  is 
obscure.  i  Compare  p.  25. 


282  R.  SH'lOMOH  LEVI.  [liii.  6- 

his  stripes,  i.  e.  by  the  common  maladies  of  mankind,  we  were 
heaUd  and  cured  of  our  sicknesses.  "  The  prophet  here  explains 
his  meaning,  and  says  that  we  were  suffering  from  two  kinds  of 
sickness,  one  common  to,  and  shared  by,  our  whole  race,  and 
implied  in  the  comparison  to  a  sheep — which  suggests  that  we 
are  all  gone  astray  together ;  the  other  corresponding  to  the 
particular  sins  of  the  individual,  and  indicated  by  the  words 
we  have  turned  each  after  his  oion  way.  Now  the  sufferings  of 
the  righteous  cannot  atone  for  the  special  sins  of  the  individual, 
but  each  man  will  have  to  pay  his  own  particular  penalty  for 
them  after  d^ath  :  the  iniquity  of  us  all,  however,  i.  e.  the 
iniquity  common  to  our  whole  race,  the  Lord  laid  wpon  him,  viz. 
upon  the  righteous  who  is  punished  for  the  iniquity  of  his  own 
age.  In  the  Yalqut  there  is  quoted  a  Midrash  from  the  Aggadah 
of  Samuel : — Says  E,.  Huna  in  the  name  of  R.  Aha  :  The  chas- 
tisements are  divided  into  three  parts,  one  for  David  and  the 
patriarchs,  one  for  the  generation  of  our  present  exile,  and  one 
for  the  King  Messiah,  as  it  is  written,  '  He  was  wounded  for  our 
iniquities,'  and,  '  But  I  have  set  my  kingj,'  etc.  Now  the  plain 
sense  of  the  first  of  these  passages  shews  that  it  cannot  include 
all  three  parts,  but  only  the  last ;  and  hence,  inasmuch  as  already, 
according  to  the  opinion  of  the  Rabbis,  the  verse  speaks  of  the 
Messiah,  it  demonstrates  also  that  he  Avill  suffer.  The  same  con- 
clusion is  also  arrived  at  from  the  words  of  Ps.  ii.  6,  one  of  the 
explanations  of  which,  '  I  have  drawn  him  out  of  the  chastise- 
ments,' clearly  involves  the  fact  of  his  suffering.  To  me,  how- 
ever, the  saying  seems  to  give  an  assurance  that  my  view  of 
the  Parashah,  that  it  relates,  namely,  altogether  to  the  sufferings 
of  the  righteous,  is  sound  and  true.  Of  these  sufferings  there 
are  three  kinds  :  First,  the  chastisements  of  love,  or  trials  such 
as  those  undergone  by  the  patriai'chs  :  with  whom,  on  account 
of  his  dignity,  is  reckoned  David  also,  for  in  reality  David's 
sufferings  were  for  the  purpose  of  making  to  a  certain  extent 

J  Compare  above,  p.  lo. 


-liii,  7.]  R.  Sh'lOMOH    LEVI. 


283 


atonement  for  iniquity ;  the  man,  moreover,  who  reflects  on  the 
nature  of  extraordinary  trials  will  see  that  he,  too,  came  to  atone 
for  Israel's  guilt  by  a  species  of  trial,  as  I  have  myself  described 
by  the  help  of  God,    The  sufferings  of  the  second  kind  are  those 
endured  for  the  iniquity  of  a  whole  generation,  which  yet  do  not 
liberate  it  from  its  guilt ;  in  such  a  case,  possibly,  the  righteous 
only  perishes,  in  order  that  his  contemporaries  may  be  the  more 
implicated,  as  happened,  in  fact,  with  the  generation  at  present 
suffering  exile  :    those  of  the  third  kind,  on  the  contrary,  are 
such  as  do  liberate  a  generation  from  its  guilt,  and  effect  atone- 
ment for  it ;  and  this  is  what  will  be  the  case  with  the  genera- 
tion of  the  Messiah.     Perhaps,  then,  the  expression  wounded  for 
our  transgressions  may  allude  to  the  first  of  these ;  bruised  for 
our  iniquities,  to  the  second ;  (he  chastisement  of  our  jjeace  ivas 
upon  him,  and  by  his  stripes  xve  are  healed,  implying,  as  it  does, 
that  we  are  entirely  free  from  all  iniquity,  to  the  third,  or,  in 
other  words,  to  the  generation  of  the  Messiah.     Thus,  if  your 
eyes  perceive  aright,  you  may  see  that  the  verses  of  the  Parashah 
agree  perfectly  together,  and  indicate  the  tlu-ee  divisions  that 
have  been  mentioned.     As  to  the  application  of  Ps.  ii.  6  to  the 
Messiah,  the  term  TiaDi  has  been  expounded  (i)  in  the  sense  of 
anointing,  so  as  to  indicate  his  perfection  in  wisdom  (for  anoint- 
ing with  oil  signifies  plenitude  of  intelligence) ;   (2)  in  the  sense 
of  pouring  out  (naOD  Ex.  xxxii.  4),  so  as  to  indicate  the  com- 
pleteness of  his  external  blessings,  such  as  riches ;   (3)  in  the 
sense  oi  fixing  (as  in  n3D»  Judg.  xvi.  13  f.),  so  as  to  indicate 
his  irresistible  strength  ;   (4)  in  the  sense  of  making  great  (as  in 
the  phrase  DIN  ''3''D3  Mic.  v.  4),  so  as  to  indicate  his  glory; 
lastly,  in  the  sense  of  drawing  out  from  suffering,  to  indicate  his 
perfection  in  all  mental  qualities,  which  are  notoriously  made 
perfect  by  suffering.    The  whole  of  this  application  you  will  find 
in  the  Talqut  on  Ps.  ii.  6,  q.  v.     '  The  prophet  now  refers  to  the 
many  righteous  who  suffer  in  the  present  exile,  being  slain  or 
burnt  for  having  not  done  violence.     Each  one  of  them,  he  says, 
was  brought  fii'st  of  all  to  the  court  of  judgment,  where  he  was 


284  R.  sh'lomoh  LEVI.  [liii.  8- 

oppressed  and  afflicted,  viz.  with  cruel  blows,  while  being  led 
before  the  judge ;  after  this  he  was  taken  to  prison,  but  Tie 
opened  not  his  mouth.  Next  he  was  brought  out  thence  to  be 
condemned  to  death,  and  was  as  a  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter;  at 
the  same  time  all  his  riches  were  confiscated,  according  to  the 
words  like  a  lamb  tvhich  before  her  sliearers  is  dumb,  i.  e.  a  lamb 
which  if  she  were  to  cry  out  would  only  be  shorn  paiiially,  but 
being  silent,  is  shorn  completely ;  like  such  a  lamb  the  righteous 
was  shorn  of  all  his  possessions,  and  like  her  also  without  opening 
his  mouth.  *In  this  seizure  both  the  king  and  the  judges  made 
common  cause,  they  all  united  to  do  injury  to  Israel ;  neither 
hindered  the  other,  although  it  is  a  frequent  occurrence  both  for 
the  judicial  power  to  rebuke  the  king,  and  for  the  king  to  rebuke 
the  judicial  power.  This  persecution,  however,  with  the  victim's 
subsequent  death,  afiected  those  also  who  were  still  left  alive ; 
for  who  was  there  to  teach  and  instruct  his  generation,  that  he 
had  been  cut  off  from  tJie  land  of  the  living,  i.  e.  from  the 
righteous  amongst  them  with  whom  he  had  been  associating  ? 
[no  one ;]  for,  for  tJie  transgression  of  the  rest  of  my  people,  i.  e. 
of  the  wicked,  tlie  stroke  fell  upon  them,  viz.  upon  the  righteous 
who  were  living,  and  were  the  friends  of  the  murdered  man. 
All  these,  as  has  been  said,  are  the  words  of  the  prophet. 
"  He  gave,  i.  e.  allowed,  his  burial  and  death  to  take  place  at  the 
hands  of  the  wicked  ;  he  also  at  his  death  gave  up  all  his  riches 
(for  they  had  been  confiscated  to  the  wicked  kingdom),  although 
he  had  done  no  violence  for  his  goods  to  be  seized,  and  although 
there  was  no  deceitfulness  in  his  mouth  for  him  to  be  mur- 
dered. Even  'while  it  is  yet  high  day'  are  the  righteous 
murdered  in  our  present  exile  by  men  who  devise  against  them 
schemes  of  wrong  '  because  they  have  done  no  violence,  and  there 
is  no  deceitfulness  in  their  mouths.'  The  passage  I  have  already 
quoted  from  the  Aggadah  of  Samuel  proves,  as  was  said,  the 
tnith  of  this  explanation  :  apply  -thyself  to  it,  and  see  and  under- 
stand ;  for  our  fathers  have  told  us  how  these  words,  spoken  as 
they  arc  in  tinith,  were  fulfilled  in  their  own  cases  in  the  pro- 


-liii.  lo.]  R.  sh'lomoh  LEVI.  285 

vinces  of  Spain  and  all  the  districts  of  the  Gentiles,  where  many 
of  them  were  burnt  or  imprisoned  for  the  Holiness  of  God  and 
the  Unity  of  his  name.  "  The  prophet  here  alludes  to  the  par- 
ticular kind  of  sufferings — such  as  those  of  the  patriarchs  or 
David — which  come  upon  a  man  individually,  whether  as  punish- 
ments for  sin  or  as  chastisements  of  love ;  though,  indeed,  in 
the  opinion  of  the  author  of  the  Moreh  \N'huMdra\,  there  are 
no  sufferings  without  sin  ;  but,  by  the  help  of  God,  I  have  fully 
explained  his  view  elsewhere,  and  it  may  be  found  in  the 
treatise  Lehem  Sh'lomoh,  q.  v.  Isaiah  says,  Him  ivhom  the  Lord 
has  pleasure  in — i.  e.  whom  it  is  his  good  pleasure  to  make 
perfect  (as  it  is  written,  Prov.  iii.  12, '  "Wliom  the  Lord  loveth — 
taketh  pleasure  in — he  correcteth,  as  a  father  doth  his  son ') — him 
he  hruiseth  with  stripes,  and  sicheneth  Avith  many  sicknesses,  both 
external  and  internal  together.  Notwithstanding,  however,  that 
these  are  but  the  chastisements  of  love  and  not  caused  by  sin, 
if  he  regards  them  as  borne  for  the  trespass  of  his  soul,  reflecting 
that,  although  in  actual  deed  he  may  have  done  no  wrong,  he 
may  still  perhaps  have  sinned  by  the  thought  of  some  trangres- 
sion,  or  there  may  be  in  his  soul  some  fault,  through  its  having 
failed  to  accomplish  so  much  as  it  should  have  done,  then  it 
is  certain  that,  besides  its  being  the  pleasure  and  purpose  of  the 
Almighty  to  perfect  him  by  his  counsel,  or  to  perfect  others  with 
him,  he  may  '  now  know'  and  now  declare  that  he  will  be  as  it 
were  an  ensign  to  all  the  nations,  and  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord 
will  j)'>'OSper  in  his  ha7id,  i.  e.  that  his  purpose  will  advance  to 
completion — a  result  which  will  be  sufficient  for  him  by  itself. 
He  will,  moreover,  be  rewarded  by  seeing  seed,  and  lengthening 
days  in  the  land,  '  like  the  days  of  heaven  upon  the  earth.' 
In  Berakhoth,  §  i  k,  Rabba,  son  of  R.  Huna,  says :  Whom  the 
Lord  hath  pleasure  in,  he  bruiseth  with  chastenings,  etc. ;  and 
the  verse  is  then  explained  as  I  have  stated,  the  words  D''{^^  DX 
ltJ'33  DC'K  being  taken  to  mean,  '  If  he  applies  his  soul,  or  makes 

^  Compare  above,  p.  8. 


286  R.  sh'lomoh  LEVI.  [liii.  1 1- 

it  his  pleasure,  to  receive  his  chasteuings  intelligently,  and  like 
a  man  presenting  a  trespass-offering,  who  performs  the  act  in 
full  knowledge  of  what  he  does  and  with  the  assent  of  his  intel- 
lect.' The  explanation  there  given  of  tVT  n^3  'n  J'Sn,  viz.  '  his 
doctrine  shall  be  established  in  his  hands/  is  also  compatible 
with  my  own,  for  it  is  God  the  instructor  who  teaches  know- 
ledge to  man  that  is  instructed ;  the  man  instructed  is  also  the 
learner  (disciple),  and  the  doctrine  taught,  which  is  the  '  Lord's 
pleasure  or  will,'  is  established  in  his  hands.  In  saying  shall 
see  seed,  etc.,  he  denies  that  his  seed  will  be  like  that  of 
R.  Yohanan,  of  whom  it  is  said  in  the  Gemara,  that  he  had 
many  sons,  but  they  all  died  ;  and  in  declaring  that  his  doctrine 
will  be  established  in  his  hand,  they  affirm  that  his  chastenings 
will  not  be  such  as  to  involve  any  interruption  of  the  Law,  In 
the  book  Zohar,  section  ac*"'1,  the  verse  is  explained  to  signify 
that  the  Lord  was  pleased  to  imrij])  him;  and  it  is  further 
stated  that  the  subject  of  CtiTl  {shall  make)  must  be  '  his  soul,' 
as  otherwise  the  prophet  must  have  employed  D''!i'^  {masc),  and 
also  that  the  '  Lord's  pleasure'  is  the  Law,  which  is  to  prosper 
in  his  hand.  "The  last  verse  spoke  of  the  chastenings  that 
come  as  a  correction  for  sin ;  the  present  verse  speaks  of  those 
which  come  of  love,  for  purposes  of  trial.  As  he  beholds,  it  says, 
the  travail  of  his  soul,  he  will  be  satisfied,  i.  e.  will  delight  and 
exult  in  the  thought  that  he  is  righteous,  and  God's  servant, 
'my  messenger  whom  I  send'  from  this  time  onwards  to  make 
many  righteous,  to  restore  them  by  a  complete  conversion,  and, 
in  the  manner  before  explained,  to  bear  their  iniquities.  ^^God 
here  makes  his  final  declai'ation  respecting  the  righteous  one 
who  is  to  atone  for  his  generation,  or  who  is  tempted  in  order 
that  by  his  trial  the  people  may  learn  to  know  the  Lord  and  to 
walk  in  his  law,  like  Abraham  when  he  was  binding  Isaac  upon 
the  altar :  Behold,  /  ivill  divide  him  in  the  world  to  come  a 
portion  like  the  portions  of  the  many  who  returned  through  his 
means  to  the  Lord  ;  for  there  were  many  whom  he  justified,  and 
the  merits  of  them  all  shall  attach  themselves  to  him.     Moreover, 


-liii.  12.]  R.  SH'lOMOH    LEVI.  287 

in  the  present  world,  he  shall  divide  spoil,  i.  e.  riches  and  honour 
and  external  goods  with  the  mighty,  i.  e.  with  rulers ;  for,  inas- 
much as  lie  poured  out  his  soul  to  die,  and  in  doing  so  carried  the 
sin  of  many,  I  will  allot  him  in  the  next  world  a  portion  as 
goodly  as  be  those  who  were  rendered  fit  to  attain  it  through 
him  ;  and  since  in  this  world  he  ivas  mimbered  ivith  the  trans- 
gressors (either  because  they  were  appointed '  to  rule  over  him, 
or  because  he  was  thought  to  be  one  of  them  himself),  hut  yet 
entreated  them  to  amend  their  ways  (or,  inade  intercession  for 
them),  therefore  tvith  tlie  m,ighty  shall  he  divide  spoil.  It  is 
further  clear  that  it  is  because  he  sanctified  my  name  among  the 
many,  that  God  promises  to  allot  and  grant  him  a  portion  in 
their  midst,  so  that  they  will  be  unable  to  withhold  it  from  him. 
And  because  his  murderers  and  those  who  would  seize  his  spoil 
are  mighty  and  strong,  therefore  he  will  divide  the  spoil  of  his 
enemies  in  their  very  presence  (ns) ;  and  then  distribute  it  to 
his  own  relatives  and  friends,  in  return  for  his  having  poiired 
out  his  soul  to  die,  and  voluntarily  choosing  death  rather  than 
life  ;  and  although  at  the  time  of  his  murder  he  was  ranked,  in 
the  sentence  read  out  to  him,  with  the  generality  of  other  trans- 
gressors, yet  he  took  no  count  of  it,  knowing  truly  that  he 
carried  the  sin  of  many,  making  it,  as  he  did,  his  constant  habit 
to  intercede  for  transgressors,  in  order  that  atonement  might  be 
made  for  them.  In  Sot  ah,  §  i,  R.  Shimlai  expounds  this 
verse  as  follows  :  Why,  he  asks,  did  Moses  long  to  enter  into 
the  Promised  Land  1  etc.  °»  This  quotation  shews  the  truth  of  my 
interpretation  of  the  last  verse ;  for  the  Rabbis  explain  it  of 
]Moses  our  master,  concerning  whom  the  saying  goes  n,  '  Moses 
was  worthy  himself,  and  made  many  others  worthy  as  well ;  the 
merits  of  them  all  shall  attach  themselves  to  him.'  They  declare, 
too,  that  it  would  never  have  entered  into  his  mind  to  be  desirous 
of  eating  of  the  fruit,  and  of  being  satisfied  with  the  good  things 

'    A  play  upon  rt3»D2  and  n:'Dn:. 

™  The  entire  JMidrash  will  be  found  above,  p.  S. 

°  Compare  p.  273. 


288  R.  Sh'lOMOH    LEVI.  [lili.  12. 

of  the  land  of  Israel,  except  that  he  might  be  enabled  to  testify 
to  them  how  the  Almighty  hud  performed  his  promise  that  it 
should  be  perfect,  not  only  in  what  was  pleasant,  but  also  in  what 
was  usefiil  (these  being  what  are  signified  by  its  '  fruit,'  for  milk 
is  useful  and  honey  pleasant),  and  also  good  (indicated  by  the 
expression  '  good  things,'  descriptive  of  the  abundance  with  which 
it  is  blessed),  for  without  his  testifying  it,  all  this  was  before 
them,  and  it  was  perfectly  well  known  to  him  to  be  so ;  but 
it  was  still  his  wish  to  fulfil  there  the  commandments  himself, 
and  so  to  elevate  them  out  of  a  condition  of  potentiality  into  one 
of  action.  God  therefore  said  to  him,  *  Dost  thou  at  all  seek  for 
anything  except  to  secure  a  reward  1 ' — i.  e.  to  bring  these  com- 
mandments into  action ;  for  a  '  reward'  is  given  not  for  a  mere 
capacity,  but  only  for  a  completed  act — '  I  will  bring  it  to  pass 
upon  thee,  as  though  thou  hadst  done  them,  for  since  thou  art  he 
who  causeth  Israel  to  do  them,  it  is  as  though  thou  hadst  done 
them  thyself.'  Therefore  I  tv'ill  divide  7iim  a  portion  with  tlie 
many — a  portion  the  same  as  theii's,  viz.  of  the  Israelites  who 
enter  in,  whether  '  with  the  latter,'  in  which  case,  apart  from  the 
literal  sense,  there  will  be  an  allusion  to  the  recomjiense  of  the 
world  to  come,  or  '  with  the  former,'  which  will  refer  to  the 
recompense  in  the  present  world.  Now  the  patriarchs  were 
worthy  of  both  these  rewards,  of  the  temporal  no  less  than  of  the 
eternal ;  and  Moses  our  master  will,  in  addition,  be  held  worthy 
in  the  resurrection,  because  he  'poured  out  his  soul  to  die' 
for  the  sin  of  the  golden  calf  (Ex.  xxxii.  32) ;  and  therefore  they 
apply  to  him  the  words  bare  the  sin  of  many,  etc.,  because  he 
was  numbered  with  those  who  perished  in  the  wilderness,  and 
also  (according  to  one  interpretation)  the  saying,  "With  how 
many  trials  did  the  generation  of  the  wilderness  vex  him  !  But 
further,  he  interceded  for  the  transgressors,  i.  e.  for  the  people 
in  the  wilderness,  who,  though  continually  vexing  him,  he  still 
used  to  pray  might  be  converted.  There  is  besides  quoted  in  the 
Talqut,  a  Midrash  from  Siphre,  which  applies  the  verse  to  Moses 
our  master  in  another  way  :  for,  inasmuch  as  all  the  perfections 


liii.  12.]  R.   SH^LOMOH    LEVI.  289 

which  were  realised  in  Israel,  were  attained  by  his  means,  he 
will  naturally  receive  as  his  reward  a  portion  equal  to  that 
of  all  the  rest;  as  it  is  written,  'And  he  came  at  the  heads 
of  the  people,'  because  he  had  '  performed  the  righteousness  of 
the  Lord  ahd  his  judgments  with  Israel'  (Deut.  xxxiii.  21), 
for  Moses  was  continually  in  all  their  assemblies^  executing 
justice.  If  now  you  are  a  man  of  sense,  you  will  be  able  to 
understand  how  everything  that  is  expounded  of  the  '  righteous 
man,  perfect  in  his  generations' — how  'many  and  sore  troubles' 
passed  over  him,  and  how  again  and  again  he  was  chastened 
with  suffering — may  be  applied  also  to  the  nation  at  large  :  for 
all  Israel  are  connected  together  like  a  single  man  [as  in  fact  it 
is  said  even  of  the  whole  human  race],  'And  he  called  their  name 
Man'  (Gen.  v.  2). 

•  Compare  above,  p.  10. 


XXXIX.   R.  ABRAHAM  OF  CORDOVA. 

§  41.  An  exposition  of  Isaiah  Hi.  i3-liu.  12. 

The  third  opinion,  appropriated  by  the  wise  men  of  Edom, 
is  that  the  Parashah  is  descriptive  of  the  Messiah,  i.  e.  of  Jesus, 
whose  '  foundation,'  in  the  writings  of  Isaiah,  rests  securely  upon 
God,  according  to  the  words.  Who  hath  believed  ?  etc.,  the  whole 
of  which  the  Nazarenes  assert  that  the  prophet  meant  to  apply 
to  the  Messiah,  describing  him,  as  he  does,  as  '  without  form  or 
comeliness.'  They  then  affirm  and  believe  that  the  person  in 
whom  all  this  language  was  fulfilled  was  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  who 
was  stricken,  smitten,  despised,  and  killed  through  sickness  of 
heart  at  the  sins  of  the  human  race,  and  that  this  is  what  the 
prophet  attests  when  he  adds  immediately  afterwards,  '  Surely 
he  hath  carried  our  sicknesses,  and  borne  our  pains,'  etc. 
(verses  4,  5).  I  shall  reply  first  of  all  by  pointing  out  how 
it  is  a  recognised  custom  of  Scripture  to  speak  habitually  of 
the  whole  nation  by  the  name  of  an  individual — addressing 
it  at  one  time  by  the  name  of  Jacob,  at  another  by  that  of 
Israel,  and  calling  it  on  one  occasion  Zion,  on  another  Jerusa- 
lem, and  so  forth.  For  instance,  in  accordance  with  this  prin- 
ciple. Scripture  says  (Deut.  vi.  4),  '  Hear,  0  Israel,  the  Lord 
our  God  is  one  God.'  The  same  practice  seems  to  me  to  have 
been  adopted  by  Isaiah,  when  he  likens  our  nation  in  her  '  deso- 
lation and  mourning'  to  a  man  stricken  and  smitten  of  God  :  in 
fact,  he  opens  his  prophecy  with  the  words,  '  Israel  doth  not 
know,  my  people  doth  not  consider'  (i.  3),  adding  immediately 
afterwards,  in  the  plural  number  (ver.  5),  '  Where  can  ye  be 
smitten  more?'  etc. ;  and  again  below,  'For  the  iniquity  of  his 


Hi,  liii.]  R.   ABRAHAM    OF    CORDOVA,  291 

covetousness  I  was  angry  and  smote  him'  (Ivii.  17),  speaking  of 
the  entire  people  in  the  wilderness  as  of  a  single  man.  Isaiah, 
moreover,  adheres  to  the  same  practice  when  announcing  the 
redemption  of  Israel  under  the  name  of  Zion,  in  the  words, 
Hi.  7,  'That  saith  to  Zion,  Thy  God  is  king,'  etc.;  and  shortly 
before  (ver.  i),  '  Put  on  thy  strength,  O  Zion :  put  on  thy  beau- 
tiful garments,  0  Jerusalem,  for  henceforth,'  etc.,  assuring  us 
that  after  the  time  Messiah  has  entered  in,  Jerusalem  will  no 
more  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  uncircumcised,  as  she  fell,  without 
being  able  yet  to  rise  again,  shortly  after  the  days  when  Jesus 
appeared.  Indeed,  this  is  an  indication  that  Jesus  was  not 
the  ti'ue  Messiah,  but  a  mortal.  Isaiah,  however,  continues 
to  employ  the  singular,  saying,  '  Shake  thyself  from  the 
dust;  arise,  and  sit  down,  O  Jerusalem,'  etc.  (ver.  2),  until, 
at  the  end  of  the  chapter,  he  declares.  Behold  my  servant 
(i.  e.  the  whole  of  God's  people,  who  are  now  spoken  of  as 
Israel)  shall  prosper,  etc.,  to  the  end  of  ver.  15,  using  terms 
descriptive  of  our  exile,  wherein  we  who  are  here  to-day  have 
'  all  like  sheep  gone  astray '  amongst  the  Gentiles.  In  the  next 
chapter  he  alludes  to  the  day  of  redemption,  which  will  bi'ing 
about  a  stupendous  miracle  in  the  midst  of  the  Gentiles  ;  for  in 
it  the  Almighty  will  magnify  Israel  with  signs  terrible  beyond 
what  can  be  imagined,  which  their  eyes  will  then  behold,  so  that 
in  their  wonderment  they  will  say  one  to  another.  Who  would 
believe  that  which  we  now  hear  ?  and  who  hitherto  hath  ever 
been  possessed  of  tlie  arm,  i.  e.  the  might,  0/  the  Lord,  so  as 
in  a  moment  to  save  his  people  Israel,  and  raise  them  to  great- 
ness 1  Did  not  WE  esteem  him  as  a  root  springing  out  of  the 
dry  ground,  devoid  of  sap,  and  deprived  of  hope,  without  form  or 
worth,  and  if  we  looked  at  it,  displaying  nothing  which  might 
excite  our  zeal  on  its  behalf  ?  He  was  despised  and  forlorn  of 
men,  etc.,  i.e.  was  incessantly  persecuted  by  the  Gentiles,  in  such 
a  manner  that  we  never  ceased  despising  and  cm'sing  him,  and 
cmcUy  heaping  on  him  our  sicknesses,  pains,  and  blows,  in  the 
idea  that  this  had  been  the  Divine  pleasure,  and  that  he  was 

u  2 


293  R.   ABRAHAM    OF    CORDOVA.  [Hi,  liil*. 

really  hated  and  loathed  by  the  Almighty,  being  stricken,  smitten 
of  God,  and  afflicted;  in  a  word,  abandoned  by  him  for  ever. 
Now,  however,  that  we  have  heard  this,  we  see  that  the  case  is 
the  reverse  of  what  we  thought :  Israel  was  wounded  for  our 
transgressions,  which  we  committed,  at  the  time  when  we  smote 
him  mortally,  in  order  to  force  him  to  listen  to  us,  and  to  follow 
our  counsels  and  the  '  stubbornness  of  our  heart.'  This  he  never 
would  do ;  but  determined  rather  to  endure  our  fierce  anger, 
although  contrary  to  justice  and  right,  to  support  cruel  plagues, 
'  sore  sicknesses  and  of  long  continuance ; '  like  a  sheep  lie  was 
led  to  tJie  slaughter,  and  like  a  lamb  dumb  before  her  shearers  so 
he  opened  not  his  mouth  to  scrutinize  the  decree  of  his  Creator, 
but  so  accepted  the  sentence  passed  upon  him  by  the  Almighty 
that  his  sufferings  became  to  us  a  source  of  iniquity.  The 
meaning  of  the  words,  '  The  chastisement  of  our  Peace  is  upon 
him,'  is  this,  that  the  ISIessiah  will  be  called  Jehovah-shalom 
[Jehovah  is  peace],  like  the  name  *  Prince  of  peace'  (Is.  ix.  5) : 
it  must  be  supposed  that  '  when  the  Lord  doeth  great  things  for 
us ' — signs  unsearchable  and  marvels  without  number — and  when 
our  Kedeemer,  the  Lord  our  righteousness,  is  come,  they  will 
'  then  say  among  the  heathen,'  as  if  speaking  for  themselves  : 
The  chastisement  and  penalty  which  should  have  been  ours,  for 
having  invented  the  fiction  of  the  advent  of  our  Messiah,  fell 
upon  Israel  instead  dui-ing  the  long  years  of  his  bitter  captivity, 
although  he  always  steadily  adhered  to  the  truth,  and  would 
never  acknowledge  our  errors ;  hence  we  never  ceased  to  afflict 
him,  imagining  that  by  his  strijjes  which  were  produced  when, 
in  zeal  for  our  own  lying  belief,  we  visited  him  with  the  rod  of 
our  anger,  we  should  secure  for  ourselves  happiness  and  pros- 
perity, and  that  by  his  pain  we  should  be  healed.  But  now  we 
see  that  we  had  all  gone  astray,  like  sheep  without  a  shepherd, 
each  turning  to  his  own  way,  one  pursuing  this  path,  and 
another  that,  none  of  us  perceiving  that  by  our  hands  which 
ought  to  have  been  helping  him  in  his  latter  end,  the  Lord  was 
bruising  him,  in  order  that  he  might  be  worthy  of  the  great 


Hi,  liii.]  R.  ABRAHAM    OF    CORDOVA.  293 

blessings  which  our  eyes  now  see  before  us  in  his  midst.  The 
prophet,  however,  for  tlie  confusion  of  the  Nazarenes,  and  to 
expose  the  nakedness  of  their  faith,  wishing  to  give  to  his  words 
that  true  sense  in  which,  to  the  absoh\te  exchision  of  any  other, 
we  have  here  explained  them,  enlarges  on  his  theme,  adding, 
'  For  the  transgression  of  my  people  was  the  stroke  upon  them' — 
as  the  word  appears  in  the  copy  of  our  sacred  and  venerated 
books,  written  in  our  own  ancient  and  truthful  tongue,  which  no 
hand  of  the  translator  has  ever  touched  for  the  purpose  of  trans- 
planting it  from  the  fields  of  truth  and  right — in  order  to  shew 
with  his  very  finger  that  the  subject  of  the  whole  prophecy  is 
not  a  particular  individual  of  a  generation,  but  the  entire  Israel- 
itish  nation ;  accordingly,  in  this  one  place,  he  intentionally 
substitutes  the  plural,  upon  them,  for  the  singular,  meaning  that 
for  their  sin  the  stroke  had  fallen  upon  the  Isi'aelites, — as  he 
says  elsewhere,  *  For  the  sin  of  her  prophets,  the  iniquities  of 
her  priests,'  etc.  (Lam.  iv.  13).  And  who  is  the  man  that  will 
not  open  the  eyes  of  his  understanding  to  discern  the  craft  and 
guile  of  the  lying  Hieronymus,  who,  in  his  version,  so  misused 
hia  inkpot  as  to  trample  on  the  word  1tD7,  contriving  in  his  usual 
manner  to  misapply  it  to  the  Messiah  (as,  in  fact,  he  distorted 
the  sense  of  the  whole  prophecy)  by  the  rendering,  '  For  the 
transgression  of  my  people  was  thei-e  a  stroke  upon  Aim,'  mean- 
ing to  imply  that  the  Messiah  was  smitten  for  the  sin  of  the 
people  ? — In  conclusion,  the  prophet  declares  that  Israel  endured 
all  these  plagues  and  sufferings,  although  he  had  done  no  violence, 
and  there  roas  no  guile  in  his  mouth :  and  so,  at  the  present 
day,  when  the  truth  is  revealed,  those  who  ravage  and  waste 
Israel  admit  that  they  hate  him  without  cause,  and  injure  him 
for  nought,  because  even  while  in  exile  amongst  the  Gentiles  he 
was  content  to  fulfil  the  statutes  and  laws  of  the  Lord.  And 
this  which  he  did  in  believing  the  Unity  of  God  and  the  Advent 
of  the  Messiah,  could  not  be  imputed  to  him  as  violence,  because 
all  his  words  were  truthful  and  just,  neither  w^as  there  guile 
in  his  mouth.     As  for  myself,  the  author.  I  could  not  in  this 


29i  U.   ABRAHAM    OF    CORDOVA.  [lii,  liii. 

prophecy  refrain  from  explaining  each  word  one  by  one,  when 
I  saw  how  the  Nazarenes  construct  with  them  nets  and  traps, 
and  build  up  a  gi-eat  argument  by  extracting  out  of  almost 
every  word  a  demonstration  that,  after  the  time  of  Jesus,  there 
can  be  no  new  future  ]\Icssiah  for  Israel  (on  the  ground  that  they 
have  ah-eady  'devoured  him  with  open  mouth"')  :  they  do  this, 
I  say,  because  they  see  that  in  reality  the  plain  and  unvarnished 
meaning  of  the  prophecy,  in  all  its  parts,  in  all  its  words,  and  in 
all  its  syllables,  is  a  cluster  of  '  bitter  grapes '  to  them.  Such, 
however,  are  their  efforts  to  turn  the  platter  upside  down,  by 
pei'verting  the  sim})le  sense  of  the  text,  and  fabricating  false- 
hoods about  them,  that  not  only  does  the  slightuess  of  their 
foundation  remain  unexposed,  but  the  pride  of  their  heart  is 
even  confirmed;  in  their  desire  to  seduce  the  wavering  multi- 
tude, and  to  'hunt  the  souls'  of  the  poor  and  innocent,  which  are 
dragged  along  by  the  cords  of  their  malicious  devices,  they  are 
compelled  to  falsify  the  translation,  so  as  to  believe  that  the 
prophets  spoke  with  reference  to  Jesus.  So  did  Hieronymus, 
and  was  canonized  for  what  he  did,  together  with  the  '  company 
of  his  friends'^'  'who  went  with  him,'  accepting  his  words  and 
adopting  his  counsels,  contending  against  the  Lord  and  all  his 
prophets  :  and  every  one  who  hears  them  or  reads  their  transla- 
tion steps  in  his  simplicity  into  their  impurities,  like  the  blind 
man  who  defiles  liimself  with  blood  in  the  street,  and  goes  down 
alive  into  hell,  sinking  every  moment  deeper  and  deeper  ;  as  for 
me,  in  the  plain  meaning  of  God's  words  will  I  rejoice ;  so  may 
I  not  '  fall  into  the  hands  of  man,'  who  is  but  ashes  and  blood. 

»  Sanhedrin,  c)^"- :  'D'a  ini'jDN  ^^2^:XD  7!>JiC'7  n'co  Dn"?  j'N  in^  bbrt 
''  So  the  phrase  (Gen.  xxvi.  26)  is  understood  by  Onqelos  and  the  Masora. 


XL.     R.  SH'MUEL  LANYADO. 

My  servant,  i.  e.  the  King  Messiah,  shall  he  high  and  exalted, 
and  lofty  exceedingly — he  shall  be  higher  than  Abi-aham,  of 
whom  it  is  wi'itten,  'I  raise  high  my  hand  to  the  Lord'  (Gen. 
xiv.  22);  lifted  up  above  Moses,  of  whom  it  is  written,  'Lift  it 
wp  in  thy  bosom'  (Num.  xi,  12);  and  loftier  than  the  ministering 
angels,  of  whom  it  is  said,  '  Their  wheels  were  lofty^  (Ezek.  i.  18) : 
and  so  again  it  is  said,  Thou  art  the  '  great  mountain '  (Zeeh. 
iv.  7),  which  is  greater  than  the  patriarchs.  R.  Yizhaq  Abarbanel 
was  unable  to  comprehend  how  the  Messiah  could  be  lifted  up 
above  Moses,  of  whom  it  is  said  that  '  there  arose  no  prophet  in 
Israel  like  him '  (Dent,  xxxiv.  10)  ;  and  still  more  how  he  was  to 
be  greater  than  the  angels,  who  are  spiritual  beings,  whereas  the 
Messiah  is  born  of  a  woman  :  it  is,  in  fact,  upon  that  expression 
that  the  idolaters  [Christians]  rest  the  chief  article  of  their 
faith,  the  Divinity  of  the  Messiah.  Abarbanel  rejects  also  the 
opinion  of  the  learned  En  Bouet*,  who  explains  it  of  the 
doctors ;  '  for  how,'  he  asks,  '  could  it  enter  into  any  one's  mind 
to  speak  of  the  doctors  as  exalted  above  Abraham  or  Moses  ? 
besides,  such  a  view  has  no  support  from  the  passages  adduced 
in  proof  of  it,  for  the  verse  from  Ezekiel  is  admitted  to  refer  to 
the  host  of  heaven,  how  then  can  it  be  used  to  establish  the 
application  to  the  Rabbis  V  The  author  of  the  'Aqedah^  writes 
as  has  been  stated  above  in  chap,  xxviii,  and  carries  En  Bonet's 
view  still  further,  supposing  that  the  Messiah  will  be  higher  than 

»  See  p.  154  :  compare  also  pp.  165-168.  ^  R.  Yizhaq  Aramah. 


296  R.  sh\aiuel  lanyado.  [lii,  liii. 

Abraham  in  respect  of  his  nobility,  more  exalted  than  Moses 
in  lavishing  all  things  needful  upon  Israel,  loftier  than  the 
angels  in  the  learning  of  the  Law.  Thus  he  himself  applies 
the  expression  to  the  perfection  procured  by  the  agency  of 
Messiah  our  righteousness.  This  he  conceives  to  include,  (i)  the 
reality  of  faith,  which  was  attained  first  by  Abraham,  when 
he  '  believed  in  the  Lord,'  and  made  his  people  to  believe  like- 
wise ;  it  is  said  that  in  this  respect  the  Messiah  will  be  higher 
than  Abraham,  because  through  him  the  true  faith  will  be  pro- 
mulgated even  more  than  by  Abraham,  who  '  raised  his  hand  on 
high  to  the  Possessor  of  heaven  and  earth  :'  and  (2)  acquaintance 
with  the  Law  which  was  given  by  Moses  for  us  to  walk  in  ;  the 
command, '  Lift  it  up  in  thy  bosom,  as  a  nurse,'  etc.,  not  referring 
to  any  bodily  guidance,  but  being  an  injunction  that  he  should 
teach  and  lead  them  to  true  knowledge  and  doctrine,  like  infants 
'  weaned  from  milk  and  removed  from  the  breast,'  which  are 
earned  by  their  nurse.  This  indeed  was  what  Moses  did,  the 
Law  which  he  set  before  the  children  of  Israel  being  as  a  spread 
table ;  and  therefore  it  is  said  that  the  Messiah  will  lead  his 
people  in  the  understanding  of  the  Law,  and  lift  them  up  even 
more  than  Moses.  The  expression  does  not  allude  to  the  power 
of  prophecy,  for  the  position  of  Moses  was  such  that  there  '  arose 
no  prophet  in  Israel  like  him.'  Inasmuch,  now,  as  the  two  high 
qualities  just  mentioned  are  intimately  connected  with  tran- 
quillity and  rest  for  the  righteous  (when  it  is  well  with  them, 
it  is  well  also  with  the  world  !),  the  peace  in  the  days  of  the 
Messiah  will  be  multiplied  exceedingly;  and  through  the  Divine 
providence  constantly  attending  him,  the  angels  who  preside 
over  the  nations  will  become  subject  to  him  (for  in  God's  provi- 
dence he  will  '  visit  the  host  of  heaven  in  heaven,  and  the  kings 
of  earth  upon  earth,'  Is.  xxiv.  21);  and  this  is  what  is  signified 
by  the  phrase  loftier  than  the  angels — for  the  Almighty  will 
'  give  nations  before  him,  and  kings  shall  he  subdue'  (Is.  xli.  2). 
R.  Yizhaq  Abarbaiiel  states  that  he  has  seen  an  interpretation  that 
would  regard  the  Mem  before  Abraham,  etc.,  not  as  the  Mem  of 


lii,  liii.]  R.  sh'muel  lanyado.  297 

superiority  or  comparison,  but  as  the  Mem  of  derivation  or  cause, 
supposing  that  in  the  ^Messiah  there  are  to  be  three  kinds  of 
perfection ;  the  first  physical,  and  derived  from  Abraham ;  the 
second  acquired,  and  derived  from  Moses,  in  whose  Law  he  is  to 
be  trained ;  the  third  divine,  in  that  an  abundance  of  all  things 
will  be  lavished  upon  him  '  from  the  Lord  out  of  heaven  :'  upon 
the  last  ground  he  is  termed  higher  than  tfie  angels.  The  words 
of  the  text  do  not,  however,  accord  with  this  explanation. 
Abarbanel  himself,  therefore,  adheres  to  its  literal  meaning,  sup- 
posing that  the  Messiah  will  be  higher  than  Abraham,  inasmuch 
as  Abraham  served  the  Lord  for  love,  forsaking  '  his  land  and 
his  kindred  and  his  father's  house,'  in  order  to  follow  after  him, 
who  received  the  seal  of  a  holy  covenant,  and  proceeded  to  bind 
his  only  son  in  order  to  fulfil  the  command  of  his  God,  and  who 
after  the  victory  over  the  kings  was  not  penetrated  by  any 
feeling  of  pride,  or  a  thirst  for  the  glory  achieved  by  their 
conquest,  or  any  desire  of  their  spoil,  but  said,  'I  raise  high  my 
hands  unto  the  Lord  that  I  will  not  take,'  etc. ;  because  the 
glory  which  he  loved  was  not  carnal  or  material.  The  King 
Messiah,  however,  will  be  high  in  the  fear  of  the  Lord,  and 
'  righteousness  shall  be  the  girdle  of  his  loins,'  etc.  In  the 
second  place,  in  relation  to  the  people,  whom  the  Messiah,  being 
'  mighty  to  save,'  will  redeem  and  rescue,  it  is  said  that  he  will 
be  lifted  up  above  Moses/  for  while  the  redemption  of  Moses 
only  brought  the  nation  out  of  Egypt  into  the  land  of  Canaan, 
the  Messiah  will  gather  all  Israel  together  from  the  four  quarters 
of  the  world.  In  the  third  place,  in  relation  to  the  Gentiles, 
that  he  will  prevail  and  rule  over  them;  for  although  their 
heavenly  princes  (Dan.  x.  1 3)  will  pour  dowm  all  blessings  upon 
them,  the  Messiah  will  still  bow  them  down  and  overcome  them  : 
what  is  meant  by  higher  than  tlie  angels,  then,  is  this,  that  the 
Almighty  will  *  visit  the  host  of  heaven,'  so  that  their  forces  will 
be  of  no  avail  to  the  nations  over  which  they  preside,  and  that 
the  Divine  abundance  will  be  shed  down  upon  the  Messiah 
directly,  which   is   not  the    case  with  the  angels,  to  whom  it 


'^98  u,  sh'miel  i.axyado.  [lii,  liii. 

is  only  transmitted  through  a  series  of  intermediate  agencies. 
Thus  far  Abarbanel.  A  diflSculty,  however,  at  once  arises  on  the 
first  point ;  for,  since  the  greatness  of  Abraham's  service  sprang 
out  of  love,  the  text  which  ought  to  have  been  appealed  to  was, 
'  The  seed  of  Abraham  who  loveth  me '  (Is.  xli.  8),  in  preference 
to  the  one  before  us,  which  by  the  expression  '  shall  be  high ' 
points  ratber  to  the  passage  in  Grenesis,  '  I  raise  high  my  hand ' 
(xiv.  22).  In  my  own  humble  opinion  it  seems  that  in  the 
first  two  parts  En  Bonet  is  right ;  for  in  point  of  nobility  the 
Messiah  will  excel  even  Abraham,  and  therefore  it  is  promised 
that  he  shall  he  high;  for  the  noble  man  who  (like  Abraham, 
when  he  swore  he  would  not  take  from  a  thread  even  to  a  shoe- 
latchet)  despises  gain,  and  even  the  wealth  that  is  his  ovm,  will 
assuredly  be  exalted  (for  '  a  man's  gift  maketh  room  for  him, 
and  bringeth  him  before  the  great');  and  such,  even  to  a  greater 
degree  than  with  Abraham,  will  be  the  case  also  with  the  Mes- 
siah our  righteousness.  And  in  the  ability  to  guide  Israel  he 
will  be  superior  to  Moses ;  for  Moses,  when  he  was  a  shepherd, 
had  compassion  on  the  kid  which  escaped  from  him  in  order 
to  drink,  and  brought  it  in  his  bosom :  for  for  that  purpose 
had  the  Almighty  chosen  himc^ — how  much  more  then  that  he 
might  guide  and  tend  Israel  1  This  then  (as  I  have  explained 
in  the  Kh^li  Hemdah)  is  the  meaning  of  Moses'  words  :  '  Ask 
not  of  me  things  which  are  not  in  my  power,  as  that  I  should 
give  them  flesh ;  for  whence  should  I  have  flesh  to  give  to  all 
this  people  1  Ask  only  that  which  is  in  my  power,  viz.  that  I 
should  "  lift  them  up  and  carry  them  in  my  bosom  : "  accordingly 
it  is  said.  Lifted  up  above  Moses.'  And  that  he  is  to  be  far 
above  both  Abraham  and  Moses  we  learn  from  the  word  exceed- 
ingly, which  stands  at  the  end ;  for  if  this  had  not  belonged  to 
all  the  three  preceding  terms,  but  only  to  the  last,  we  should 
have  read  not  ^ and  lofty,'  but  merely  'lofty:'  the  conjunction 
and,  by  coupling  the  three  expressions  together,  indicates  that 

*  Sh'moth  Rahha,  c.  2. 


Hi,  liii.]  K.  sii'muel  lanyado.  299 

the  adverb  is  intended  to  qualify  them  all.  As  regards  En 
Bonet's  explanation  of  *  loftier  than  the  angels,'  my  judgment 
coincides  with  that  of  R.  Yizhaq  Aramah  and  R.  Yizhaq  Abar- 
banel,  who  reject  it  on  two  grounds :  I  think  that  the  words 
should  be  understood  in  their  natural  sense,  but  believe  also  that 
they  involve  a  mystery  which  no  mouth  can  utter :  it  is,  however, 
revealed  in  the  book  Zohar,  in  the  section  on  Deut.  xxii.  6  ('When 
a  bird's  nest  chanceth  before  thee,'  etc.) ;  so  that  we  need  not 
wonder  if,  as  is  the  fact,  he  is  to  be  loftier  than  the  angels. 
The  text  appears  to  me  to  refer  simply  to  the  fear  and  dread 
which  he  will  inspire  into  all  flesh  even  more  than  the  angels, 
who  yet  are  so  awful  that,  as  we  know,  when  one  appeared  to 
Manoah  and  his  wife,  they  exclaimed,  '  We  have  seen  God ;  we 
shall  surely  die'  (Judg.  xiii.  22).  Accordingly  the  Messiah  is 
said  to  be  'loftier  than  the  augels,'  in  respect  of  the  terror 
which  their  presence  creates  ;  since  every  one  who  beholds 
them,  like  Ezekiel,  is  'afraid  and  trembles;'  for  in  Ezek.  i.  18, 
'they  had  fear,'  the  meaning  is  not  that  the  cherubim  were 
fdled  with  fear  of  the  Almighty — a  fact  which  there  was  no  occa- 
sion to  remark  specially — but  that  they  inspired  fear  into  all 
who  beheld  them.  And  then,  lastly,  he  is  called  '  the  great  moun- 
tain, which  is  greater  than  the  patriarchs,'  because  each  of  the 
patriarchs  helped  in  his  turn  to  restore  the  woi-ld  after  it  had 
been  corrupted  by  the  siu  of  our  first  parents  d ;  and  so  it  is 
stated  in  the  book  Zohar  that  Abraham  did  his  part  in 
this  restoration,  when  he  was  thrown  into  the  fire  to  fulfil  the 
verse  which  says,  '  The  molten  images  of  their  gods  ye  shall 
burn  with  fire^'  (Deut.  vii.  25) :  thus  Abraham,  by  tasting  the 
torment  of  the  flames,  made  atonement  for  man,  and  is  hence 
called  the  'gi-eat  man.'  Isaac,  again,  made  atonement  for 
bloodshed,  inasmuch  as,  for  the  fear  he  felt  (as  it  is  written, 


•1  Lit.  'the  first  Adam'  or  '  man  : '  rf.  i  Cor.  xv.  45. 

•^  Abraham,  it  was  said,  was  treated  in  the  same  way  that  his  descendants 
were  to  treat  the  heathen  idols. 


300  1?.  .SH"i\lL'EI-  LAXYADO.  [lii.  liii. 

Gen.  xxxi.  42,  '  the  fear  of"  Isaac  .  .  .  .'),  his  own  blood  was  as 
good  as  poured  out  upou  the  altar.  And  Jacob  averted  the 
consequences  of  a  forbidden  marriage  by  pi'eserving  peace  be- 
tween the  two  sisters,  where  any  one  else  would  have  only  been 
a  cause  of  rivalry  and  discord ;  for  it  was  just  to  obviate  such 
that  the  prohibition  was  given  not  to  take  a  woman  as  wife 
*  unto  her  sister  to  be  her  rival  in  her  life'  (Lev.  xviii.  18). 

The  opinions  of  our  wise  men  on  the  interpretation  of  this 
verse  have  now  been  discussed :  but  we  do  not  gather  clearly 
from  their  language  whether  they  are  speaking  of  Messiah  son 
of  Ephraim,  or  of  Messiah  sou  of  David.  The  same  doubt  is 
suggested  by  Abarbanel,  who  thinks  however  that  the  former 
cannot  be  intended  ;  for  how,  he  asks,  could  it  be  said  of  him 
that  he  will  'be  high  and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceedingly  1'  If, 
on  the  contrary,  we  refer  the  prophecy  to  Messiah  son  of  David, 
there  is  a  difficulty  in  the  expression  marred  beyond  man  ;  for 
Isaiah  says,  '  Behold  my  servant,  whom  I  uphold ;  my  chosen 
one  in  whom  my  soul  delighteth ;  I  have  put  my  spirit  upon 
him'  (xlii.  i).  And  again,  '  And  a  rod  shall  come  forth  out  of 
the  stem  of  Jesse'  (xi.  i)  :  how,  too,  can  he  say  of  him.  Stricken, 
smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted,  for  Messiah  son  of  David  will  be 
'just  and  victorious'  (Zech.  ix.  9),  and  so  far  from  being 
despised  and  forlorn  of  men,  that  '  unto  him  will  the  Gentiles 
seek'  (Is.  xi.  10) "?  Nor  are  the  other  verses  more  applicable  to 
him,  which  declare  how  he  will  endure  sufferings  and  death  for 
Israel's  sake.  In  a  word,  the  explanation  of  the  Rabbis  and  of  the 
Targum  of  Yonathan  cannot  possibly  be  conceived  as  being  truth- 
ful in  the  sense  of  being  literal;  it  is  allegorical  and  adventitious, 
consisting,  as  it  does,  in  the  adaptation  of  one  of  their  traditions 
to  the  language  of  the  text ;  and  a  proof  of  this  lies  in  the  fact 
that  the  Targum  itself  refers  the  subsequent  verses  to  Israel, 
and  not  to  the  Messiah,  and  that  one  verse,  the  last,  is  referred 
by  our  Rabbis  to  Moses.     Thus   far  Abarbanel  f.     A   similar 

'  Above,  p.  163. 


lii,  liii.]  K.  sh'muei.  i.axyauo.  301 

difficulty  was  felt  by  'Ibn  'Ezra,  as  I  shall  shew  directly,  when 
I  transcribe  his  words  later  on.  In  my  own  humble  opinion, 
who  accept  'the  words  of  the  wise  as  goads'  (Qoh.  xii.  ii),  I 
believe  that  they  mean  to  assert  that  the  verse  speaks  solely  of 
Messiah  son  of  David,  to  whom  all  the  gorgeous  language  in  it 
will  apply.  The  prophet  next  addi'esses  the  2:>eople  of  Messiah 
son  of  Ephraim,  and  encourages  them  not  to  be  afraid  of  the 
myriads  which  were  against  them,  assuring  them  that  the  degree 
of  his  future  exaltation  will  be  proportionate  to  the  amazement 
with  which  they  had  previously  contemplated  him ;  that  even 
though  the  son  of  Ephraim  were  slain,  the  Almighty  would 
avenge  him  by  the  hand  of  Messiah  sou  of  David,  who  would 
sprinkle  the  blood  of  many  nations.  The  words  mean  then, 
As,  when  thou,  0  Messiah  son  of  Ephraim,  wentest  forth  into 
the  world,  many  were  astonished  at  thee,  wondering  how  it 
could  possibly  be  that  his  countenance  was  so  marred  beyond 
men,  and  his  form  beyond  the  sons  of  men,  whether  also  such 
was  the  usual  appearance  of  a  conqueror — as  they  thus  mocked 
thee  without  measure,  so  will  Messiah  son  of  David  sprinkle 
the  blood  of  many  nations :  the  fact  is  that  the  prophet  here 
uses  the  third  person,  in  order  to  shew  that  he  means  some  one 
different  from  Messiah  son  of  Ephraim,  who  had  been  men- 
tioned just  before,  and  one  who  will  shed  the  blood  of  his 
enemies.  Then  kings  too  will  put  their  hand  upon  their 
mouth  (as  he  says,  At  him  kings  shall  shut  their  mouth),  since, 
so  he  adds,  besides  what  was  told  them  before  the  coming  of 
Messiah  son  of  David,  they  now  see  more  terrible  things  still, 
even  that  which  had  never  been  told  them,  and  2)erceive  that 
which  they  had  never  heard  :  in  other  words,  things  which 
they  were  now  for  the  first  time  perceiving,  in  virtue  of  the 
spirit  of  understanding,  which  enabled  them  to  discern  one 
thing  hidden  within  another,  were  now  increased  manifold. 
After  this,  the  Almighty,  speaking  for  himself  and  the  congre- 
gation of  Israel  (or  for  himself  and  the  two  Messiahs),  enquires 
Upon  ivhom,  in  days  gone  by,  tvas  the  arm  of  the  Lord  revealed 


302  R.   SH^MUEL    LANYADO.  [Hi,  liii. 

that  tliey  might  be  able  to  compare  one  thing  with  another  ? 
for  although,  as  it  is  written,  he  '  laid  it  bare '  against  the 
Egj'ptians,  and  '  wrought  with  the  arm  of  his  might '  (cf.  Is. 
lii.  lo),  still  he  has  not  manifested  it  so  openly  now  in  the 
second  Deliverance.  The  reply  is,  Upon  Messiah  son  of 
Ephraim,  who  will  conie  up  before  Mm,  and  in  comparison  with 
Messiah  son  of  David  (who  will  follow  after  him)  be  as  a 
sucker  or  small  branch,  and  as  a  root  out  of  the  dry  ground, 
which  is  very  small.  He  is  to  have  wo  fonn,  to  be  despised, 
forsaken  of  men,  and  afflicted  vi'i{\\  endless  pains, — as  our  Rabbis 
relate  of  him,  he  will  stand  in  the  gate  of  Rome  ^,  binding  up 
each  wound  separately  by  itself,  lest  the  season  of  Deliverance 
arrive  too  suddenly ;  and  his  pains  and  sicknesses  will  make  it 
seem  as  though  the  faces  hidden  from  them  were  averted  be- 
cause of  himself  and  his  deeds,  which  had  been  the  cause  of 
our  esteeming  him  not.  Yet  in  truth  it  was  otherwise  :  in  all  his 
sufferings  he  was  guiltless  :  it  was  our  sicknesses  that  he  bare, — 
the  sicknesses  and  pains  which  were  in  readiness  to  come  for 
our  iniquities  upon  us  were  carried  by  him  instead,  and  we 
were  in  error  in  thinking  him  stricken  and  smitten  of  God,  i.  e. 
as  Rashi  explains,  an  object  of  his  enmity.  After  his  advent, 
to  use  again  the  words  of  Rashi,  the  son  of  Ephraim,  who  for 
a  while  had  held  sovereignty  and  executed  judgment  over  Israel 
and  the  Gentiles,  was  taken  away,  because  the  Gentiles  resolved 
to  slay  him ;  and  who  then  could  tell  of  his  generation  and  the 
travail  which  bcfel  him  ?  for  he  was  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of 
the  living,  and  slain /or  the  transgression  of  my  people,  the  stroke 
intended  for  them  being  borne  by  him  instead.  In  addition  to 
this,  he  made  his  grave  with  the  wicked,  being  buried  amongst 
those  who  were  slain  at  the  time  that  the  Gentiles  assembled 
together  against  him,  and  was  delivei'cd  into  the  hand  of  the 
rich,  i.  e.  of  the  kingdom  of  wickedness,  for  death  under  all 
the  forms  which  men  could  devise;  he  was  not  to  be  put  to 

s  Above,  p.  39. 


iii,  liii.]  R.  sii'muel  lanyado.  303 

death  speedily,  but  tortured  by  every  conceivable  method  of 
pi'oducing  a  severe  and  painful  end ;  and  hence  it  is  that  the 
])ropIiet  says  not  *  in  his  death '  but  '  in  his  deaths'  And  all 
this  happoiicd  because  ho  had  done  no  wrong  in  deed  or  word, 
but  had  kept  the  tinith  of  God  alone  in  his  mouth ;  for  it  was 
the  Lord's  ■pleasure  to  bruise  and  sicken  him.  But  if  thou,  O 
Israel,  jnittest  before  thy  eyes  the  trespass-offerinr/  which  would 
be  incurred  by  his  murder,  and  the  preservation  of  his  soul  fi'om 
death,  and  if  thou  lettest  thyself  be  pained  thereby,  behold,  this 
thy  care  for  him  will  stir  thee  up  unto  repentance,  and  prevent 
him  from  being  slain  :  thus  he  shall  see  seed  and  have  long 
days,  and  /or  the  travail  of  his  soul  which  he  endured  he 
shall  be  satisfied,  i.  e.  shall  eat  and  be  filled  of  the  reward  be- 
stowed upon  him  for  his  sufferings ;  and  although  he  will  not 
hold  the  same  rank  and  position  as  Messiah  son  of  David,  never- 
theless, by  his  knowledge  lie  will  justify  many,  and  by  suffering 
himself  bear  their  iniquities,  until  at  last  I  divide  him  a  portion 
with  the  many,  etc. — Such  is  the  sense  of  these  verses,  according 
to  the  opinion  of  those  amongst  our  wise  men  who  apply  them 
to  Messiah  son  of  David,  and  to  Messiah  son  of  Joseph,  who  is 
of  the  tribe  of  Ephraim. 

[Here  follow  the  expositions  of  Rashi,  'Ibn  'Ezra,  R.  David 
Qamhi,  and  Abarbanel  (see  above,  pp.  37,  43,  49,  168).  Upon 
Abarbanel,  Lanyado  passes  the  following  criticisms  :  liii.  2,  after 
the  explanation  of  liiNiJI  (p.  174);  His  statement,  however,  raises 
some  difficulty,  for  if  the  word  relates  to  past  time,  the  1  ought 
to  have  been  pointed  with  Pathach  :  liii.  8  (p.  180),  upon  1D7 ; 
This  is  not  correct,  for  the  plural  must  have  been  expressed  by 
1^  CyjJ,  'there  were  strokes  upon  him:''  liii.  9  (p.  181, 1.  10),  the 
custom  alluded  to  is  further  illustrated ;  And  similarly  in  the  coun- 
ti-y  of  Ishmael,  where,  for  the  same  reason,  for  the  sake  of  dis- 
tinction, the  shrouds  are  dyed  yellow  :  liii.  10  (p.  183);  This  ob- 
jection, however,  makes  no  difference  ;  for  even  those  who  derive 
the  word  from  n?n — which  is  the  simplest  way — have  to  account 
for  the  absence  of  the  N  ;  so  that  the  third  radical  is  still  want- 


304  i{,  sh'muel  lanyado.  [Hi.  13- 

ing  :  lii.  12  end  (p.  188);  A  difiSculty,  however,  still  remains;  for 
the  prophecy  citeJ  relates  certainly  to  Jerusalem  itself,  and  not 
to  the  whole  land  :  Josiah  also  was  slain  out  of  Jerusalem  ;  but 
this  being  so,  the  words  *  there  shall  no  more  enter  into  thee  the 
uucircumcised  and  unclean'  can  have  no  reference  to  Josiah.] 

LII.  "In  my  own  humble  opinion,  the  Parashah  must  be  sup- 
posed to  describe  the  righteous  worshipper  of  God.  And  the  pro- 
phet says  that  being  skilled  as  a  servant  in  the  understanding  of 
the  Law,  he  will  deserve  finally  that  the  glory  should  come  upon 
him,  fie  will  be  high  and  exalted,  etc. :  he  does  not  say,  '  and 
will  be  high,'  but  makes  a  break  at  the  word  '  my  servant,' 
between  '  will  understand '  and  '  he  will  be  high,'  to  shew  that 
the  former  denotes  the  spiritual  success  constituted  by  the  ser- 
vice of  God,  and  that  this  will  render  him  worthy  of  the  ana- 
logous successes  that  are  to  follow ;  he  will  be  high,  namely,  in 
the  dignities  of  the  present  world,  and  exalted  through  the 
elation  of  soul  occasioned  by  his  successes,  and  lofty  exceedingly, 
so  that  all  who  stand  before  him  will  be  scorched  by  the  bright- 
ness issuing  '  from  his  chamber  h.'  "  Turning  now  to  the  Israel- 
itish  nation  mentioned  at  the  end  of  the  previous  Parashah,  and 
speaking  with  them  mouth  to  mouth,  the  prophet  annoimces 
the  reason  why  the  servant  of  the  Lord  should  be  deemed 
worthy  of  such  exaltation,  saying,  As  many,  0  Israel,  were 
astonished  at  thee  when  they  saw  thy  calamities  (for  '  as  they 
saw,  so  were  they  amazed') — in  other  words,  in  proportion  to 
their  astonishment  that  the  order  of  creation  was  changed  in 
him,  so  was  the  countenance  of  my  servant  marred  beyond  man, 
through  pain  for  the  misfortunes  of  the  synagogue  and  of 
Israel,  until  a  livid  hue  had  destroyed  all  resemblance  to  human 
features,  and  his  form  or  contour  beyond  the  sons  of  men — for 
the  miseries  of  Israel  so  bowed  him  down  that,  as  he  moved, 
his  head  was  bent  between  his  knees.  ^''  Being  thus  affected 
for  Israel,  however,  it  is  accordingly  (p)  destined  for  him  to 

•>  An  allusion  to  Ps.  xix.  5. 


-Hii.  3.]  T^.  sh'muel  lanyado.  305 

sp-inkle  many  nations,  i.  e.  by  his  victories  to  diminish  their 
numbers,  and  cause  but  a  few  to  be  left  of  them ;  as  a  man 
who,  after  dipping  his  finger  into  water,  sprinkles  a  drop  here 
and  a  drop  there,  so,  when  God's  servant  sprinkles,  he  will 
leave  them  '  very  few  indeed,'  even  as  '  two  or  thi-ee  berries  on 
the  top  of  a  furthest  bough'  (Is.  xvii.  6).  At  him,  i.e.  at  his 
victory,  kings,  when  they  see  the  successes  of  Israel  in  the 
latter  days,  ivill  shut  their  mouth;  for  they  loill  then  see  what 
had  not  been  told  them — those  splendid  predictions  having  been 
announced  not  to  themselves,  or  to  their  people,  but  to  Israel, 
and  perceive  ivhat  they  had  never  \)q^ovq  heard — the  promises 
of  the  prophets  having  been  given  only  to  Israel,  and  they 
themselves  knowing  nothing  of  them. 

LIII.  ^  Israel  now  asks,  Who  believed  the  glad  tidings  which 
they  heard  of  our  future  exaltation  ?  and  upon  ivhom  were  re- 
vealed the  prophecies  of  the  vengeance  about  to  be  executed  by 
the  arm  of  the  Lord  upon  them  that  hate  him  ?  were  they  not 
revealed  solely  to  us  Israelites  1  and  the  Gentiles,  when  they 
heard  that  we  were  to  attain  security  and  prosperity,  and  even 
when  the  arm  of  the  Lord  displayed  itself  in  vengeance,  would 
not  believe ;  so  that,  when  they  do  perceive  our  successes,  they 
will  be  seeing  things  which  had  never  been  told  them.  All  this 
will  happen  on  account  of  the  one  righteous  who  is  here  called 
'  my  servant ; '  for  '  the  righteous  is  an  everlasting  foundation.' 
^  Like  a  branch  of  the  kind  called  suckei's,  because  (Ps.  Ixxx. 
12)  they  suck  in  [nourishment]  from  the  rivers,  so  will  the 
righteous,  with  his  good  deeds  and  understanding  of  the  Law, 
come  tip  before  him  ;  like  a  sucker  constantly  imbibing  moisture, 
living  in,  and  supported  by,  the  divine  fulness  he  will  grow 
up  before  the  Almighty.  But  before  the  sons  of  men  he  will 
appear  simply  as  a  root  devoid  of  moisture  rising  out  of  the  dry 
earth,  without  form  or  bodily  beauty;  nevertheless,  ivhen  tve 
look  in  hopes  of  beholding  a  comely  aspect,  although  no  bright- 
ness or  beauty  meets  our  gaze,  we  shall  still  desire  him,  for 
'the  Lord  giveth  grace  and  glory'  (Ps.  Ixxxiv.  12).     ^ He  was 

X 


306  R.  sh'muel  lanyado.  [liii.  4- 

desjnsed  and  forsaken  of  wicked  men,  in  consequence  of  being 
a  man  of  pains,  or  one  upon  whom  from  time  to  time  pains 
used  to  come,  in  addition  to  tlie  chronic  and  permanent  ail- 
ments expressed  by  the  phrase  kuoivn  of  sickness :  and  those 
who  saw  him  thought  wrongly  that  all  these  befel  him  because 
God  had  hidden  his  face  from  him  on  account  of  his  iniquities  : 
he  was  therefore  so  much  the  more  despised,  and  we  esteemed 
him  not,  regarding  him  simply  as  a  sinner  against  God  :  in  the 
words  of  Yonathan  in  the  Targumi,  'As  though  the  presence 
of  the  Shekhinah  had  been  withdrawn  from  us,  they  [the 
righteous]  are  despised,  and  esteemed  not.'  *  But  the  facts 
were  otherwise  :  he  himself  carried  our  sicknesses,  and  bare  our 
pains,  and  by  saying  he  himself,  the  prophet  indicates  that  the 
righteous,  of  his  own  will,  was  pleased  to  carry  them  for  Israel. 
The  '  sicknesses,'  denoting  transient  calamities  which  are  curable 
like  an  ordinary  ailment,  are  not  so  severe  or  distressing  as  the 
'pains;'  accordingly  the  prophet  says  with  accuracy  that  he 
carried  them  himself:  of  the  latter,  however,  which  designate 
more  painful  misfortunes,  it  is  not  said  'he  himself  bare,'  but 
simply  '  he  bare  ; '  since,  as  immediately  follows,  it  was  in  fact 
the  Almighty  who  laid  them  upon  him.  °  Here,  again,  with 
the  lighter  term  'wounded,'  the  pronoun  is  similarly  made 
emphatic  ;  not  so  however  with  '  bruised  : '  for  although  wound- 
ing is  the  penalty  for  '  transgressions,'  and  bruising  for  '  iniqui- 
ties,' which  are  the  less  serious  of  the  two  k,  there  is  no  diffi- 
culty upon  this  score,  since,  granted  that  transgressions  are  the 
severer,  yet  the  iniquities  which  are  most  generally  committed 
are  those  which  produce  '  bruising.'  We  however  thought  him 
stricken  of  God  for  his  own  sins,  whereas  in  reality  he  was 
stricken  for  ours,  being  himself  just  and  perfect.  The  view 
here  taken  obviates  the  surprise  felt  by  Abarbanel,  how,  namely, 
one  man  could  possibly  suffer  for  another,  if  even  '  the  son 
shall  not   die  for  the  iniquity  of  the    father,   nor  the  father 

i  Above,  p.  5.  "•  Cf.  Yepheth  ben  Ali,  p.  25. 


-Hii.  6.]  H.  sm'muel  lanyado.  307 

for  the  iniquity  of  the  son'  (Ezek.  xviii.  20) :  for  the  righteous 
voluntarily  and  of  his  oavu  accord  bears  the  sicknesses  of  his 
generation,  in  order  to  merit  the  never-ending  pleasure  of  making 
atonement  for  them.  The  meaning  of  the  prophet  may  then 
perhaps  be  that  we  fancied  the  decree  against  him  had  gone 
forth  from  the  Almighty,  while  in  fact  he  was  stricJcen  and 
smitten  of  himseK,  not  involuntarily,  but  by  his  own  choice,  and 
that  he  kept  begging  his  brethren  and  friends  to  '  come  and  re- 
joice in  his  sufferings,  for  they  would  be  the  means  of  making 
atonement  for  the  whole  of  Israel.'  It  is  possible  that  the 
words,  He  tvas  wounded,  etc.  (which  are  but  a  repetition  of  what 
Avas  stated  in  verse  4,  '  He  himself  carried  our  sicknesses,'  etc.), 
denote  minor  forms  of  suffering  which  come  upon  the  righteous 
in  oi'der  that  he  may  be  able  to  make  atonement  for  his  gene- 
ration, viz.  (as  with  the  trespass-offering  offered  in  cases  of 
uncertainty!)  by  holding  the  penalty  over  them  in  suspense, 
and  in  order  that  they  may  repent.  The  object  of  this  suf- 
fering is  that  we,  being  punished,  may  make  our  peace  with 
God ;  as  the  prophet  indicates  in  the  words  the  chastisement 
of  our  peace  was  thrown  upo7i  him;  and  in  that  which  fol- 
lows, bif  his  stnpes  it  is  healed  to  t(,s,  not  however  so  as  to 
be  cured  entirely,  for  the  text  does  not  run  '  we  are  healed,'  but 
'it' — i.e.  part  of  the  sickness — 'is  healed  to  us.'  ®I  have 
heard  that  our  learned,  perfect,  and  most  illustrious  teacher, 
E-.  Mosheli  El-Sheikh,  understood  the  words,  All  we  like  sheep 
tvent  astray,  as  denoting  a  fault  in  which  we  all  shared  alike ; 
because,  when  a  single  sheep  wanders  astray,  the  rest  in  the 
flock  follow  after  it :  he  adds  a  remark  to  the  effect  that  he 
only  wishes  this  were  all;  on  the  contrary,  however,  we  also 
each  tvent  after  his  own  way,  all  the  ways  being  equally  cor- 
rupt, and  none  better  than  the  rest  ^,  etc.  But,  in  my  humble 
opinion,  the  expression  iniquity  (not  iniquities)  of  us  all  is  used, 

1  Lit. '  the  suspended  trespass-offering : '  see  B'reshith  Hdbbd,  §  43. 
"  See  p.  267. 

X  2 


308  R.  sh'muel  lanyado.  [liii.  7. 

because  there  are  both  general  sins  in  which  all  people  offend, 
and  also  particular  sins  of  which  only  individuals  arc  guilty  : 
the  former  are  the  more  serious,  and  hence  our  Rabbis  say, 
There  is  no  comparison  between  the  few  who  fulfil  the  com- 
mandment and  the  many  who  fulfil  the  commandment ;  and  in 
the  same  way  the  many  who  stumble  and  transgress  are  very 
different  from  the  few  who  stumble  and  transgress.  Accord- 
ingly, with  reference  to  the  general  sins,  the  phrase  is,  All  we — 
i.  e.  altogether,  on  a  common  track — have  gone  astray  like  sheep  ; 
and  with  reference  to  the  particular.  We  have  turned  each  to 
his  oivn  way  :  with  regard  to  the  latter,  now,  '  every  man  must 
be  put  to  death  for  his  own  sin,'  but  with  regard  to  the  former, 
the  prophet  declares  that  the  iniquity  common  to  us  all  is  laid 
upon  him.  Or  the  distinction  may  possibly  be  this  :  '  All  we 
like  sheep  have  gone  astray '  may  denote  02)en  sins,  such  as  are 
committed  by  all,  and  '  we  have  turned  each  to  his  own  way ' 
may  denote  secret  sins  committed  by  the  individual  which  no 
one  besides  himself  can  see  or  be  cognizant  of :  the  open  sins, 
now  ('the  iniquity  of  us  alV),  were  laid  upon  the  righteous, 
though  they  ought  in  strictness  to  have  been  visited  upon  us : 
the  sins  done  in  secret,  however,  did  not  affect  him.  In  all  these 
interpretations  py  denotes  simply  iniquity,  and  not,  as  'Ibn 
'Ezra  thought,  the  penalty  of  iniquity.  ''  Abarbanel's  view  is  not 
incorrect,  viz.  that  oppressed  and  afflicted  and  led  to  the  slaugh- 
ter refer  to  his  bodily  sufferings,  and  as  a  lamb  (himh  before  her 
shearers,  etc.,  to  the  loss  of  his  possessions ;  and  that  the  words 
lie  opened  not  his  mouth  are  repeated  to  indicate  that  he  did 
not  open  it  while  undergoing  either  one  or  the  other.  It  seems 
to  me,  however,  that  the  repetition  may  possibly  have  a  different 
significance  :  they  may  mean  (i)  that  although  oppressed  and 
afflicted,  he  still  never  opened  his  lips  to  his  tormentors,  whether 
for  jmrposes  of  imprecation  or  of  entreaty,  either  while  he  was 
being  led  to  slaughter,  or  while  they  were  plundering  his  goods ; 
and  (2)  that  he  did  not  open  his  mouth  to  murmur  against  the 
attributes  of  God,  but  admitted  the  justice  of  the  sentence  of 


liii.  8.]  R.  sh'muel  lanyado.  309 

heaven  against  himself.  ^  I  have  heai-d  it  stated  that  the  learned 
and  illustrious  Mosheh  El-Sheikh  explained  this  verse  to  sig- 
nify that  the  righteous  was  rescued  from  the  sufferings  and 
judgment  which  were  to  be  executed  upon  Israel ;  if  so,  then, 
he  must  have  suffered  with  and  for  his  generation  till  the  time 
came  when  he  was  finally  released  and  went  to  his  eternal  home : 
toJio,  however,  was  there  that  could  openly  acquaint  7iis  genera- 
tion, when  the  righteous  that  was  amongst  them  had  been  thus 
cut  off  out  of  the  land  of  life,  that  they  must  be  warned  to  sin 
no  more  1  for  from  that  moment,  for  the  transgression  of  my 
people  the  stroke  was  to  fall  upon  them,  i.  e.  upon  my  people, 
and  not  upon  the  righteous,  as  it  had  done  before,  while  he  was 
suffering  for  it :  henceforward,  therefore,  by  speaking  thus  the 
prophet,  he  conceives,  bids  the  people  be  warned.  But  in  my 
humble  opinion,  the  verse  signifies  ihdii  from  the  imprisonment 
and  judgment  about  to  be  the  lot  of  his  generation,  he  xvas 
taken  in  their  stead ;  and  who  was  there  then  to  declare  even 
in  a  whisper  that  he  had  made  atonement  for  them,  in  that,  by 
liis  being  thus  cut  off  from  life,  for  the  transgression  of  my  people 
the  stroke  had  fallen  upon  them  (viz.  upon  the  righteous)  ? 
There  is,  however,  another  possible  method  by  which  we  may 
understand  in  what  manner  the  death  of  the  righteous  effects 
atonement :  we  find  it  stated  (Ivii.  i )  that  '  the  righteous  is 
taken  away  because  of  evil  (to  come),'  in  order,  viz.  that  ven- 
geance may  take  its  course  :  the  difficulties  arising  in  connexion 
with  this  subject  I  have  examined  in  the  Klili  Hemdah.  Or 
the  meaning  may  be  that,  when  his  time  has  come,  and  he  has 
completed  his  task  or  is  taken  away,  he  makes  atonement  for 
his  generation,  as  it  is  written  "1S3  Pali's  (Cant.  i.  14),  i.e.  *a 
man  in  whom  there  is  everything  is  a  ransom,'  or  makes  atone- 
ment :  but  the  righteous  who  ought  to  have  lived  on  and  ob- 
tained perfection  is  cut  off  fi'om  the  land  of  life,  and  so  removed 
from  impending  vengeance.  Accordingly,  in  view  of  the  first 
point,  it  is  said  that  while  he  was  holding  sovereignty  and  high 
office  over  Israel,  and  executing  judgment,  he  was  taken  away, 


310  R.  sh'muel  lanyado.  [liii.  9- 

therein  resembling  the  *  man  in  whom  is  everything,  and  who 
is  a  ransom'  for  his  generation,  as  it  is  written  (ib.  vi.  2),  '  My 
beloved  went  down  into  his  garden,  to  the  beds  of  spices,'  etc.  : 
hence  it  is  added,  And  who  could  tell  his  generation  ?  for  he 
was  cut  off  without  having  accomplished  his  destiny.  Or  the 
last  words  may  mean  that  he  teas  cut  off  not  merely  out  of  this 
present  world,  but  also  from  the  land  of  life,  on  account  of  the 
transgression  of  my  2>^ople,  for  which  a  stroke  would  undoubt- 
edly come  ujjon  them,  from  which  the  righteous  was  to  be  taken 
away:  thus  the  verse  will  contain  a  double  statement,  (i)  '  Who 
could  declare  his  generation?'  i.e.  the  generation  for  which  his 
death  made  atonement,  and  (2)  *  For  he  was  cut  off  from  the 
land  of  life  for  the  transgi'ession  of  my  people ; '  after  which  the 
*  stroke '  is  said  to  fall  upon  them  for  their  wickedness  in  having 
thus  caused  his  death.  '  During  his  lifetime  the  righteous  in 
his  humility  acquired  for  himself  the  possession  of  a  burial- 
place  with  the  wicked ;  hence  it  is  here  said  that  he  himself 
made  his  grave  with  the  wicked:  he  also  made  it  with  the 
rich  in  his  death,  he  was  not  poor,  but  in  all  his  deaths  could 
be  counted  with  the  rich — he  was  not  '  hated '  like  the  '  poor ' 
(Prov.  xix.  7) :  nevertheless,  although  his  riches  thus  put  it 
within  his  power  to  provide  himself  a  grave  with  the  right- 
eous, and  although  he  had  done  no  violence,  he  yet  chose  one 
amongst  the  wicked.  Or  by  the  rich  (">''t:'y)  are  denoted  Esau 
[the  Christians]  (itJ'y),  the  meaning  being  that  every  form  of 
death  to  which  he  was  subjected  was  inflicted  upon  him  by 
them,  and  that  he  accepted  all  contentedly  because  he  had 
done  no  violence;  for  if  he  had  committed  violence  as  they  had 
done,  they  would  have  buried  him  'in  the  choice  of  their 
sepulchres,'  and  Esau  would  not  have  tortured  him  with  such 
an  exquisite  variety  of  death  ('deaths'  in  the  plural).  Neither 
was  there  any  guile  in  his  mouth :  for  it  was  not  in  a  spirit 
of  hypocrisy,  but  with  perfect  sincerity  of  heart,  that  he  bade 
them  bury  him  amongst  the  wicked.  ^°  Tlie  Lord,  however, 
loas  i^leasedj  to  bruise  the  righteous,  a7id  to  sicken  him — though 


-liii.  u,]  K.  sh'muel  lanyado.  311 

only  with  a  light  ailment,  in  ordei'  that  if  thou,  0  Israel,  makesl 
his  soul,  i.  e.  the  soul  of  the  righteous,  to  be  a  trespass-offerinrj — 
makest  its  affliction  an  occasion  for  the  confession  of  thy  sins — 
then  assuredly  this  righteous  one  (who  was  bruised  that  he 
might  be  able  to  atone)  shall  be  healed,  and  will  see  seed  and 
have  long  days,  and  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord,  which  is  that 
Israel  may  be  purified,  shall  prosper  in  his  hand :  since  his 
death  will  have  had  the  same  effect  as  all  the  usual  trespass- 
oflferings  (such  as  those  rendered  for  sacrificial  mistakes,  rob- 
bery", etc.)  by  which  atonement  is  procured.  Upon  the  inter- 
pretation here  given,  we  remark  that  the  change  from  the  third 
person  to  the  second  is  analogous  to  the  one  noticed  above, 
lii.  14,  where,  after  addressing  Israel  ('at  thee'),  the  prophet 
turns  to  speak  about  the  righteous  in  their  midst  {'his  coun- 
tenance,' '  his  form,'  and  in  the  previous  verse  '  shall  prosper')  : 
so  here  'if  thou  puttest'  is  addressed  (as  I  have  explained)  to 
Israel,  while  '  to  bruise  him,'  '  shall  see,'  '  sJiall  have '  refer  to 
the  righteous.  "  There  are  two  descriptions  of  '  travail,'  one 
the  travail  of  the  soul  caused  by  the  study  of  the  Law,  the 
other  the  travail  of  the  body,  or  the  toil  undergone  in  the  effort 
to  amass  riches,  and  to  eat  and  drink  :  the  perfect  one  who  is 
the  subject  of  tliis  prophecy  will  reap  no  profit  whatever  in  this 
world  from  the  travail  of  Ids  soul :  it  is  all  resei'ved  for  the 
world  to  come,  where  he  may  enjoy  the  brightness  of  the  She- 
khiuah — as  is  indicated  by  the  term  shall  see,  here  used  meta- 
phorically of  attaining  or  comprehending  :  accordingly  it  is  said, 
On  account  of  (or  For°)  the  travail  of  his  soul  he  will  attain  the 
privilege  of  seeing  spiritual  prosperity  and  being  satisfied  there- 
with. It  is  possible  that  the  words  may  allude  to  the  opinion  also 
held  by  the  Rabbis  that  while  the  righteous  is  still  alive  in  the 
present  world,  the  Almighty  shews  him  the  reward  reserved  for 


"  Cf.  Lev.  V.  14-vi.  7. 

"  ]n  having  the  same  force  assigned  to  it  as  in  ver.  8,  For  the  transgression 
of  my  people. 


313  R.  sh'muel  lanyado.  [liii.  12. 

him  in  the  future,  and  that  as  he  looks  upon  it  his  soul  is  satis- 
fied :  thus  it  is  said  in  B'rcsldth  Rahhd  p,  in  the  Parashah  And 
Abraham  died  [Gen.  xxv.  8],  '  Themselves  sleep,  and  their  soul  is 
satisfied.'     The/rom  ({?0)  will  in  this  case  be  partitive  :  some  of 
the  travail  of  his  soul  he  will  see  in  this  world,  but  not  the 
whole.     By  Ids  knowledge  the  pure  and  innocent  will  guide 
other  men  in  righteousness,  and  justify  tJie  just.     Or  tlie  sense 
of  these  words  may  be  that  when  two  adversaries  come  before 
him,  by  liis  knowledge  he  will  justify  the  righteous  and  con- 
demn the  guilty ;   and  my  servant  will  direct  all  his  efforts 
towards  tlie  many,  so  as  to  render  them  worthy  of  happiness, 
bidding  them  'do  good,'  in  so  far  as  he  will  justify  the  jitst, 
and  '  turn  from  evil,'  in  that  he  will  hear  their  iniquities,  viz. 
by  shewing  himself  ready  to  accept  cheerfully  the  sufferings 
which  ought  to  have  fallen  upon  them.     ^^  Therefore,  since  he 
will  thus  justify  many,  the  justice  of  the  many  will  attach  itself 
to  himi,  and  he  will  be  rewarded  for  what  he  has  done,  as  I 
have  explained  on  the  verse,  '  He  executed  the  justice   of  the 
Lord  and  his  judgments  with  Israel'  (Deut,  xxxiii.  21);  for  all 
the  righteous  acts  performed  by  Israel  will  be  imputed  to  Moses, 
who  made  them  worthy  in  the  same  way  as  if  he  had  done 
them  in  company  with  Israel  himself :  upon  the  same  principle 
also  I  explain  'I  am  a  companion  of  all  who  fear  thee'  (Ps. 
cxix.  63),  for  since  the  Psalmist  justified  them,  and  was  the 
cause  of  their  fearing  God,  he  had  a  common  lot  with  them, 
and  could  call  himself  their  companion.      Similarly  it  is  pro- 
mised here,  /  will  allot  him  a  portion  tvith  the  many — he  will 
have  a  portion  with  the  many  whom  he  justified — and  he  shall 
divide  spoil  with  the  mighty,  i.  e.  with  those  whom  by  his  coun- 
sels he  strengthened  and  confirmed  in  the  way  of  righteousness, 
as  our  Eabbis  explain  on  the  verse,  '  For  mighty  is  he  who  doeth 
his  word'  (Joel  ii.  11),  i.  e.  God  confers  might  upon  the  right- 
eous that  they  may  become  doers  of  his  word :  with  such  then 

p  Cf.  p.  272.  <»  Cf.  p.  287. 


liii.  12.]  R.  sh'muel  lanyado.  313 

will  he  divide  spoil,  as  though  he  were  the  chief  and  they  the 
followers  ;  for  the  deed  is  greater  than  the  doer.  The  reason 
why  all  this  happened  is  stated  in  the  succeeding  words :  Be- 
cause he  poured  out  his  soul  to  die  in  order  to  bear  their  iniqui- 
ties, and  so  far  deceived  the  judgment  of  the  wicked  as  to  be 
himself  numbered  with  the  transgressors,  as  though  he  were  their 
companion  in  sin.  So  little,  however,  was  this  the  case,  that  in 
fact  he  carried  the  sin  of  many,  saying,  '  Turn  to  me,  let  there 
be  no  iniquity,  listen  to  my  voice '  (Job  vi.  29);  his  words 
being  listened  to,  because  he  was  thought  to  be  one  of  them- 
selves ;  and  so,  too,  whenever  they  were  wishing  to  transgress, 
he  would  appeal  to  tJiem,  saying,  '  Do  not,  my  brethren,  I  pray 
you,  do  not  this  wrong'  (Gren.  xis.  6),  entreating  and  begging 
them  by  every  means  in  his  power  to  desist  from  evil.  Other- 
wise the  first  part  of  the  verse  may  mean.  Independently  of 
his  portion  being  a  goodly  one,  I  will  further  honour  him 
by  its  being  distributed  to  him  in  the  midst  of  the  whole 
assembly  (as  it  is  said,  '  In  or  among  viany  will  I  divide  to 
him') — for  this  he  would  feel  to  be  a  privilege  and  mai-k  of 
esteem ;  and  similarly  ivith  the  miyhtij  he  shall  divide  spoil,  i.  e. 
in  company  with  them,  for  his  own  chamber  r  will  be  in  close 
proximity  to  theirs. 

»■  Above,  p.  304. 


XLI». 


XLII.     R.  ABRAHAM  BEN  Y'HUDAH   KAZAN b. 

LII.  "  Behold  in  tlie  latter  days,  my  servant  Jacob,  i.  e.  the 
righteous  who  are  iii  him,  will  j^rosper,  etc. :  in  the  Midrash,  '  My 
servant  shall  prosper,  i.  e.  the  Messiah ;  he  shall  be  higher  than 
Abraham,  lifted  up  above  ^Moses,  and  loftier  than  the  angels.' 
^*  As  many  peoples  were  amazed  at  them  when  they  saw  their 
depression,  and  said  one  to  another  in  the  exile,  See  how  their 
countenance  is  marred,  i.  e.  dark  and  worn,  beyond  other  men — 
for  there  are  many  nations  who  think  that  the  features  of  the 
Jew  are  disfigm-ed  and  unlike  those  of  other  men,  and  ask  (as, 
for  example,  in  the  countries  of  Ishmael  and  Persia)  whether  a 
Jew  has  a  mouth  or  an  eye — ^^  so  now  will  his  hand  also  be 
mighty,  and  Israel  shall  'cast  down  the  horns  of  the  nations 
which  have  scattered  him '  (Zech.  ii.  4).  Qamhi,  however,  ex- 
plains nf  as  meaning  will  make  to  speal;  for  people  in  their 
amazement  at  his  greatness  will  be  talking  of  him  continually. 
IVDp''  'will  open,''  tliough  others  render  'will  close,'  as  t)eut. 
XV.  7  :  they  may  either  open  their  moutli  to  tell  of  Israel's 
greatness,  or  close  it  by  laying  their  hand  upon  it  in  astonish- 
ment at  beholding  it. 

LIII.  *  Had  we,  they  say  to  each  other,  had  we  heard  from  others 
what  we  are  now  beholding,  who  would  ever  have  believed  it  ? 

*  See  Preface.  **  Compare  Rashi  throughout. 


liii,  2-8.]  R.  ABllAHAM   BEN    y'hUDAH    KAZAN.  315 

tipon  whom  has  tlie  arm  of  the  Lord  ever  yet  heen  revealed  in 
such  splendour  and  greatness  1  ^  Before  such  greatness  came 
upon  it,  this  people  was  in  deep  depression,  springing  up  out 
of  itself  like  a  sucker,  and  like  a  root  out  of  the  dry  earth — the 
point  of  the  comparison  heing  that  as  it  is  a  marvel  if  any  root 
or  plant  be  found  growing  in  arid  soil,  so  it  was  also  a  marvel 
when  Israel  came  up  out  of  captivity.  He  had  no  form  nor 
comeliness,  viz.  while  in  exile ;  and  when  %ve  first  of  all  beheld 
it,  how  were  we  to  desire  it  1 — on  the  contrary,  we  rather  felt  a 
loathing  towards  it.  ^  D"'B'"'N  Hn,  i.  e.  the  most  insignificant  of 
men;  or,  according  to  another  explanation,  forlorn  of  men,  because 
they  would  not  associate  with  him  :  a  man  of  pains — alluding 
to  the  sufferings  of  exile,  and  taught  of  sickness,  i.  e.  accustomed 
to  have  the  yoke  of  exile  pass  over  him.  IJDD  D''J2  ^JlDMI, 
Rashi :  For  their  depression  they  hid  their  faces  from  us  that 
we  might  not  see  them,  like  a  person  stricken  with  leprosy  who 
is  afraid  to  look  up.  Qamhi :  We  were  as  men  hiding  their 
faces  from  him;  we  could  not  look  at  him,  because  of  the 
loathing  we  felt  for  him,  and  we  accounted  him  for  nought. 
*  But  now  we  see  that  this  was  not  merely  a  consequence  of 
their  depression :  Israel  suffered  in  order  that  by  his  sufferings 
atonement  might  be  made  for  all  the  wicked ;  yet  we  thought  he 
had  been  hated  of  God,  stricken,  smitten,  and  afflicted.  *  ??nD 
2nerced,  as  Num.  xix.  i6.  lyyti^SO  because  of  our  transgres- 
sions. N310  bruised.  'l31  1D10,  he  was  punished,  in  order  that 
the  whole  world  might  have  peace:  by  mun  are  denoted  the 
sufi'erings  of  exile.  ®  It  is  now  revealed  how  the  seventy  nations 
have  erred :  yet  the  Lord  let  himself  be  entreated  by  him  and 
propitiated  for  the  iniquity  of  us  all,  in  that  he  refrained  from 
destroying  his  world.  "^  CJJ  he  was  opj)ressed  in  exile,  and 
afflicted  with  stripes,  yet  he  opened  not  his  mouth  to  complain 
of  what  we  did  to  him,  but  was  as  a  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter 
and  opened  not  his  mouth  to  ciy,  or  as  a  lamb  dumb  before  her 
shearers,  ^ii  denotes  sufi'erings  affecting  his  property,  nsyo 
those  afiecting  his  person.    *  ivyo  from  sovereignty,  cf.  i  Sam.  ix. 


316  R.  ABRAHAM   BEN   y'HUDAH   KAZAN,  [liii.  9- 

17;  or,  as  others  explain,  from  confinement,  in  wliicli  lie  had 
been  kept  by  them.  DDC'DD,  i.  e.  from  the  punishments  he  had 
hitherto  endured.  The  meaning  is,  that  the  Gentiles  will  ex- 
press themselves  thus  when,  hereafter,  they  see  Israel  taken  and 
released  from  bondage.  And  Jus  generation,  etc.,  wlio  ever  said 
or  suspected  that  his  generation  would  thus  rise  to  fame  1  (or, 
Who  could  declare  all  the  troubles  which  he  undein^vent  V)  for  he 
was  cut  off  from  the  land,  of  life,  i.  e.  from  the  land  of  Israel. 
Others,  however,  think  the  verse  to  mean  that  while  in  exile 
lie  was  really  considered  to  have  been  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of 
the  living ;  how  then  were  we  to  expect  that  such  greatness  as 
this  would  ever  be  his  ?  For  the  transgression,  etc.  Each 
nation  will  make  this  confession,  saying  that  in  consequence  of 
their  own  transgression,  and  not  Israel's,  had  the  stroke  fallen 
upon  them.  ^  He  resigned  himself  to  whatever  form  of  burial 
might  be  decreed  against  him  by  the  wicked  who  were  ever 
condemning  the  Israelites  to  be  murdered  and  then  buried  like 
asses  in  the  bellies  of  dogs.  He  consented,  then,  to  be  slain 
according  to  the  will  of  (JlN)  the  wicked,  refusing  to  deny  the 
God  of  Israel ;  and  this  is  the  meaning  of  gave  .  .  .  . ;  for  if  he 
had  yielded,  they  would  have  released  him ;  he  would  not  do 
this,  however,  but  preferred  to  meet  death  for  the  sake  of  the 
Unity  of  God.  Nor  was  there  any  guile  in  his  mouth  so  as  to 
accept  idolatiy  as  the  worship  of  God.  '"  But  the  Lord  was 
pleased  to  bruise  him,  and  so  to  lead  him  back  to  prosperity ; 
therefore  he  put  him  to  sickness.  The  Almighty  now  says.  If 
his  soul  is  so  devoted  to  my  holiness  as  to  return  itself  as  a 
trespass-offering  for  all  his  rebelliousness,  then  I  will  pay  him 
a  goodly  reward,  he  shall  see  seed  and  have  long  days.  DB>N 
is  a  fine  or  ransom,  as  in  the  account  of  the  Philistines,  1  Sam. 
vi.  3.  Shall  see  seed,  as  Ezekiel  says,  *I  will  increase  them 
with  men  like  a  flock'  (xxxvi.  37).  SJuiTl  have  long  days,  as  it 
is  written,  '  The  days  of  my  people  shall  be  as  the  days  of  a 
tree'  (Is.  Ixv.  22) ;  and  as  Zechariah  says  (viii.  4),  'Each  with 
a  staft"  in  his  hand  for  very  age.'     And  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord, 


-liii.   12.]  R.  ABRAHAM   BEN   y'HUDAH   KAZAN.  317 

etc. ;  for  he  will  multiply  him,  and  shew  good  to  him  exceed- 
ingly. '^  Up  to  this  point  the  Gentiles  have  been  speaking  : 
now  commence  the  words  of  God.  For  the  travail  of  his  soul, 
he  says,  which  he  bore  in  exile,  he  shall  see  good  so  as  to  he 
satisfied  with  it ;  and  my  righteous  servant,  i.  e.  Israel,  by  his 
knowledye — for  all  of  them  will  know  me,  as  it  is  written.  Is. 
xi.  9,  '  And  the  earth  shall  be  filled  with  the  knowledge  of  the 
Lord ' — ivill  make  many  riyhteous,  as  it  is  said,  '  And  many 
nations  shall  come  and  say,  Come,  and  let  us  go  up  into  the 
mountain  of  the  Lord,  and  he  will  teach  us  of  his  ways'  (Mic. 
iv.  2) ;  and  their  iniquities  he  will  hear,  viz.  by  his  righteous- 
ness, so  that  there  will  be  peace  and  happiness  throughout  the 
whole  world.  ^^  Therefore,  because  he  does  this,  /  will  divide 
him  a  jiortion  with  the  great,  i.  e.  a  lot  and  inheritance  with  the 
old  patriarchs.  Qamhi  explains,  I  will  divide  him  the  spoil 
of  many  nations,  those,  viz.,  who  are  to  come  with  Gog  to  Jeru- 
salem :  but,  according  to  the  view  which  I  have  adopted,  D""!! 
signifies  great.  Because  he  poured  out  his  soul  to  die,  i.  e.  re- 
signed himself  to  death  in  captivity,  and  was  numbered  with  the 
transgressors,  i.  e.  was  punished  as  though  he  had  been  one  of 
them  himself,  and  carried  the  sin  of  many,  the  sin,  namely, 
which  they  committed  in  heaping  ill-usage  upon  him,  and  inter- 
ceded for  the  transgressors,  to  call  down  blessings  upon  their 
land,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  they  had  ti'ansgressed  against 
him. 


XLIII.     R.  NAPHTHALI   BEN   ASHER 
ALTSCHULER. 


Behold  my  servant.  Since  I  see  that  unfortunately  the 
Gentiles  have  built  upon  this  Parashah  a  heap  of  vanity,  I  have 
undertaken  the  task  of  refuting  their  errors  by  a  true  and  con- 
vincing method  in  accordance  with  the  teaching  of  my  relation, 
the  great  and  illustrious  Rabbi,  Nahman  of  Belsitz.  i .  If  the 
opinion  [of  the  Christians]  is  correct,  why  is  he  [Jesus]  called 
'my  servant?'  is  he  not  by  their  own  arguments  God?  and  if 
it  be  replied  that  he  is  called  '  servant '  in  reference  to  the  time 
during  which  he  was  still  man,  why  does  Isaiah  say  '  he  will 
be  high  and  exalted,'  etc.  ?  for  even,  by  their  own  accounts, 
Jesus  was  never  during  his  whole  life  in  any  position  of  autho- 
rity :  if  again  it  be  supposed  that  the  expression  relates  to  what 
will  take  place  after  the  Resurrection,  even  then  there  is  a  diffi- 
culty ;  for  even  the  Gentiles  say  that  at  that  time  he  will  be 
altogether  God,  how  then  could  he  be  called  a  '  servant  ?'  2.  The 
words  '  so  marred  was  his  countenance  beyond  man '  will  not 
apply  to  this  man,  for  [the  Christians]  themselves  interpret  of 
him  the  verse,  '  Thou  art  fairer  than  the  children  of  men,'  etc. 
(Ps.  xlv.  3)  :  if  then  upon  one  occasion  he  is  termed  '  despised,' 
upon  another  '  fair,'  their  arguments  refute  themselves.  3.  By 
wliom  are  the  words,  '  As  one  that  hid  his  face  from  him,'  sup- 
posed to  be  spoken  ?  if  by  Israel,  they  are  untrue,  for  on  the 
contrary  (as  they  are  well  aware)  they  hardened  their  faces  at 


Hi.  13,  14-]       R.  NAPHTHALI    BEN    ASHER   ALTSCHULER.  319 

lilm  and  contemned  him  ever  so  many  times ;  if  by  the  nations 
t)f  the  world,  they  are  no  less  untrue,  for  the  Gentiles  were 
ultimately  reconciled  to  his  teaching.  4.  The  words  in  verse  4, 
'  He  hath  carried  our  sicknesses,'  etc.,  are  assigned,  according  to 
the  Christian  interpretation,  to  Israel  as  a  confession  that  they 
would  not  acknowledge  him  as  God,  and  thought  that  it  was 
God  who  smote  him,  and  that  he  had  not  come  to  make  atone- 
ment for  sin,  as  though  (which  God  forbid  !)  they  had  been  in 
error  in  thinking  this :  a  difficulty  however  then  arises,  for  if 
he  makes  no  atonement  for  those  who  do  not  receive  him  as 
God,  how  can  he  '  carry  their  sicknesses  1 '  5.  How  can  Israel 
declare  that  '  the  Lord  laid  upon  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all,'  if 
those  who  do  not  believe  in  his  affliction  derive,  as  the  Naza- 
renes  also  admit,  no  advantage  from  it  1  If  you  urge  that  the 
words,  '  He  hath  cai'ried,'  etc.,  are  spoken  by  the  Nazarenes, 
there  is  still  a  difficulty,  for  why,  after  tliinking  that  he  was 
smitten  of  God,  and  had  not  come  for  the  purpose  of  making 
atonement  by  his  suffering,  did  they  proceed  to  accept  him  as 
God  ]  and  how,  when  they  had  followed  after  him  themselves, 
could  they  say,  '  All  we  like  sheep  have  gone  astray?' 

LII.  ^"  I  will  now  proceed  to  explain  these  verses  of  our  own 
Messiah,  who,  God  willing,  will  come  speedily  in  our  days !  I 
am  surprised  that  Rashi  and  E.  David  Qamhi  have  not,  with 
the  Targum  ^,  applied  them  to  the  Messiah  likewise.  The  pro- 
phet says  he  shall  be  '  high  and  exalted  and  lofty,'  expressing 
the  idea  under  various  forms,  in  order  to  indicate  that  his  ex- 
altation will  be  something  extraordinary.  It  is  a  proof  that  the 
Parashah  refers  to  our  Messiah,  that,  alluding  to  the  future 
Deliverance,  the  prophet  had  said  before,  '  Break  forth  into  joy, 
ye  waste  places  of  Jerusalem '  (lii.  9),  and  '  How  beautiful  on 
the  mountains,'  etc.  (ver.  7),  and  immediately  afterwards  con- 
tinues, '  Behold  my  servant  shall  prosper,'  etc.  ^*  As  many 
nations  were  astonished  when  they  saw  Israel's  depression,  say- 

"  Above,  p.  5. 


320  R.  NAPHTHALI   BEN   ASIIER   ALTSCHULER.         [Hi.  15- 

ing  to  one  another,  How  marred  is  the  countenance  of  each 
one  of  them  !  See,  how  'their  form  is  black'  (Lam.  iv.  8)  be- 
yond other  men  !  for  the  Gentiles  think  that  the  features  of  a 
Jew  are  disfigured  and  unlike  those  of  other  nven,  sa  that  there 
are  even  amongst  them  those  who  ask  whether  a  Jew  has  mouth 
or  eye,  as,  for  example,  iu  the  coimtry  of  Persia  ('Ibn  'Ezra  ^). 
^°  So  will  the  King  Messiah  scatter  many  nations ;  at  this  kings 
tvill  shut  their  mouth,  in  wonder  at  the  glorious  and  God-sent 
successes  which  will  attend  him.  For  that  ivhich  %vas  not  told  then}, 
will  they  have  seen, — it  had  never,  namely,  entered  into  their 
minds  that  oiir  Messiah  was  still  to  come,  for  they  believe  that 
he  has  appeared  already,  but  both  their  memory  and  their  ex- 
pectation will  perish  !  The  parallel,  and  that  xuhich  they  had 
not  heard,  is  added  for  the  sake  of  emphasis. 

LIII.  ^  Wlu)  would  have  believed  our  report  ?  If  we  had 
heard,  so  they  will  say  to  one  another,  from  others  that  which 
Ave  now  are  beholding,  we  should  never  have  believed  it :  upon 
whom  was  tJie  arm  of  the  Lord  ever  revealed  in  majesty  and 
greatness,  that  it  should  now  have  been  revealed  upon  a  de- 
pressed people  like  this  nation  of  Israel  ?  The  question  is 
one  expressive  of  contempt,  as  though  to  say,  Who  is  this  that 
it  is  thus  revealed  upon  %  ^  Before  such  greatness  came  to  it, 
it  was  in  depression,  i.  e.  the  name  of  the  Messiah  was  not  re- 
cognised in  the  world,  but  it  sprang  up  out  of  itself  like  one 
of  the  suckers  of  a  tree,  and  like  the  marvel  of  a  root  rising  out 
of  the  dry  ground,  so  Israel  was  brought  up  marvellously  out  of 
exile:  at  first  it  had  no  comeliness,  beauty,  or  form,  and  tvlien 
we  beheld  it,  it  had  no  beauty,  so  how  can  the  Almighty  devise 
it  now  ?  Or  the  meaning  may  be,  that  '  it  had  no  beauty, 
neither  did  we  desire  it,  but,  on  the  contrary,  loathed  it.'  ^  He 
luas  despised  in  our  eyes,  and  the  most  insiynificant  of  men  (or, 
forlorn  of  men,  because  they  would  not  associate  with  him) ;  a 
man  of  pains,  who  passed  all  his  days  in  anxious  dread  lest  the 

^  Compare  p.  44. 


-liii.  7.]        R.  NAPHTHALI   BEN    ASIIEU   ALTSCHULER.  321 

Gentiles  should  appear  suddenly  and  attack  them ;  and  taught 
of  sickness,  being  accustomed  to  have  the  yoke  of  exile  pass  over 
him.  The  prophet  uses  the  singular,  referring  to  the  Messiah  who 
is  their  king:  thus  the  Messiah  is  termed  'despised'  as  represent- 
ing Israel.  Others  think  yiT*  signifies  broken.  And  he  was  as 
thougJi  ive  hid  our  faces  from  him,  for  we  would  not  look  at 
him  because  of  the  loathing  wdiich  we  felt  for  him ;  and  we 
accounted  him,  i.  e.  Israel,  for  nought.  *  But  now  we  see  that 
this  was  not  a  consequence  of  his  depression,  but  that  he  suf- 
fered in  order  that  by  his  sufferings  atonement  might  be  made 
for  the  whole  of  Israel,  as  it  is  said  of  the  prophet  Micah,  that 
the  blood  issuing  from  him  made  atonement  for  all  Israel. 
The  sickness  which  ought  to  have  fallen  upon  us  was  borne  by 
him :  the  prophet  means  to  say,  "When  Messiah  son  of  Joseph 
shall  die  between  the  gates,  and  be  a  marvel  in  the  eyes  of 
creation,  why  must  the  penalty  he  bears  be  so  severe  1  Avhat  is 
his  sin,  and  what  his  transgression,  except  that  he  will  bear 
the  chastisements  of  Israel,  according  to  the  Avords  smitten  of 
God  ?  Othei's  consider  that  the  passage  speaks  of  the  Messiah 
who  is  smitten  noio  with  the  pains  of  the  world  to  come  (as 
it  stands  in  the  Gemara^),  and  endures  so  the  sufferings  of  Israel. 
And  yet  we — it  is  Isi'ael  who  are  speaking — thought  that  he  had 
been  hated  of  God.  ^  But  it  was  not  so :  he  teas  loounded  for 
our  transgressions,  bruised  for  our  iniquities,  and  the  chastise' 
ment  which  was  afterwards  to  secure  oicr  jjeace  was  tqjon  him, 
®  Like  sheep,  i.  e.  like  sheep  without  a  shepherd  so  long  as  the 
Messiah  had  not  arrived,  tve  all  went  astray  ;  yet  the  Lord  let 
himself  be  entreated  by  him  and  propitiated  for  the  iniquity  of 
us  all,  in  that  he  refrained  from  destroying  us.  "^  He  tvas  oj}- 
pressed  under  exactors  and  persecutors,  artd  answered  with 
words  of  treachery,  yet  he  opened  not  his  mouth,  but  endured 
in  silence  like  a  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter,  and  like  a  lamb  dumb 
before  her  shearers.    (The  words  VD  nriD''  N?"l  refer  to  the  '  sheep.') 

•^  Above,  p.  34. 
Y 


3.22  E.  NAPHTIIALI    BEN    ASHER   ALTSCHULER.        [liii.  8- 

*  From  the  confinement  in  wliicli  he  was  kept  by  them,  and 
from  the  judgment  or  sentence  of  punislimcnt,  he  ivas  taken  ;  and 
who  said  or  suspected  that  his  generation  would  ever  attain 
such  greatness  as  it  has  attained  now  %  for  at  first  it  ivas  cut  off 
and  exiled  from  the  land  of  life,  i.  e.  the  land  of  Israel ;  for  for 
tfm  transgression  of  my  ijeople  had  this  stroke  come  upon  the 
Messiah.  ^  He  resigned  himself  to  be  buried  in  whatever  man- 
ner the  wicked  might  decree,  who  were  always  condemning 
Israel  to  be  murdered,  and  in  accordance  with  (nx)  their  judg- 
ment ;  and  was  ready  for  any  form  of  death  (D^nio)  according 
to  the  decision  of  tlie  rich,  i.  e.  of  the  [wealthy]  magistrate. 
Why,  however,  should  he  have  been  thus  punished  althotigh  he 
had  done  no  violence,  etc.,  except  that  the  Almighty  was  trying 
him  ?  The  words  allude  to  Israel  who  are  now  in  exile  ;  though 
others  hold  that  they  allude  to  the  Messiah,  ns  will  then  sig- 
nify with,  the  meaning  being  that  when  the  wicked  man  dies, 
the  Messiah  will  die  likewise,  as  though  his  grave  were  ivith 
him :  in  the  same  way  he  will  die  with  the  rich  who  accumu- 
lates his  wealth  by  robbery,  although  he  had  himself  done  no 
violence.  ^"  I  will  see,  the  Almighty  now  says,  whether  his 
soul  is  so  devoted  to  my  Holiness  as  to  return  itself  as  a  tres- 
pass-offering  for  all  his  rebelliousness  :  if  so,  I  will  then  pay 
him  his  reward ;  he  shall  see  seed  in  this  present  world,  and 
jyrolong  his  days  in  the  world  to  come.  DC'N  is  the  fine  or 
satisfaction  which  a  man  gives  to  one  against  whom  he  has 
committed  some  offence.  "iT'a  'n  J'Sni,  by  transposing  two  of 
the  words,  and  the  business  in  his  hand  tlie  Lord  shall  prosper. 
"  Of  the  labotir  of  Ids  oivn  sotd  he  ate  and  was  satisfied ;  he  did 
not  plunder  other  people.  Hy  his  knowledge  he  will  justify 
the  just ;  the  King  Messiah  will  mete  out  right  judgment  to  all 
who  come  to  be  tried  before  him  ;  and  my  servant  will  become 
a  prince  over  many — the  word  12]}  being  used  as  in  the  Gemara, 
'  Wlicn  I  make  thee  a  prince,  I  make  thee  also  a  slave.'  And 
their  inifjuities  he  loill  bear,  as  happens  always  with  the  riglit- 
eous,  as  it  is  said  (Num.  xviii.  i ),  '  Thou  and  thy  sons  shall 


-liii.  12.]      R.  NAPHTHALI   BEN   ASIIER   ALTSCHULER.  323 

carry  the  iniquity  of  the  sanctuary.'  ^^  Therefore  I  will  divide 
liim  a  lot  and  an  inheritance  with  the  great,  i.  e.  with  the  patri- 
archs in  the  garden  of  Eden ;  and  with  the  mighty,  i.e.  with  the 
patriarchs  also,  h^  shall  divide  spoil,  viz.  the  spoil  of  the  world 
to  come — the  word  being  used  metaphoincally — because  he  poured 
oiit  his  sold  to  die,  resigned  himself  voluntarily  to  death,  and 
loas  numbered  with  the  transgressors,  was  punished  as  though 
he  had  been  one  himself,  and  for  the  sake  of  others  carried  tJie 
sin  of  many,  and  made  intercession  for  the  transgressors,  inas- 
much as  through  his  sufferings  prosperity  came  into  the  world. 
It  may  be  remarked  that  Rashi  explained  this  Parashah  of  the 
righteous  who  are  lu  exile,  and  who  endure  there  suffering  and 
affliction. 


Y  2 


XLIV.     R.  SH'LOMOH   DE   MARINI. 


It  might  have  been  expected  that,  after  descrihing  the  return 
of  Israel  to  the  Holy  City,  the  pro})het  would  at  once  have  gone 
on  to  the  prophecy,  '  Shout,  0  barren  one,'  etc.  (liv.  i)  :  it  seems, 
however,  tliat  he  has  interposed  tlie  present  Parashuh,  because 
the  words  '  Depart  ye,  depart  ye/  etc.  (lii.  1 1 )  are  addressed 
to  the  nations  left  in  bondage  after  Israel's  redemption,  who  as 
they  'bring  meat-offerings  unto  the  Lord'  (Ixvi.  20)  and  see  the 
gloiy  and  exaltation  of  his  people,  will  be  filled  with  astonish- 
ment, amazed  at  the  wondrous  marvel  done  before  their  eyes, 
and  eager  to  understand  how  this  great  tiling  could  have  hap- 
pened in  the  world,  for  a  nation  to  have  been  suddenly  and  in 
a  moment  changed  from  one  extreme  to  another.  An  account 
is  accordingly  here  given  of  the  reflections  which  will  occur  to 
them,  and  of  the  considerations  which  their  mode  of  thought 
will  suggest  to  them  on  the  two  topics  of  Israel's  depression 
and  exaltation,  and  the  confession  of  their  own  error,  until  at 
last  they  finally  acknowledge  the  truth,  justifying  Grod's  will  in 
all  that  he  does.  The  meaning  of  the  reply  made  by  God,  after 
their  own  words  are  concluded,  will  be  explained  below :  the 
I)rophet  begins  by  premising  in  the  first  three  verses  an  exact 
statement  of  the  nature  of  the  perfection  and  happiness  which 
Israel  is  hereafter  to  attain,  and  at  which  many  will  he  aston- 
ished. It  should  be  remembered  that  this  prophecy  not  only 
speaks  at  once  both  of  the  Israelitish  nation  and  of  the  Messiah, 
but  at  the  same  time  alludes  also  to  any  righteous  one  amongst 


lii.  I3-]  E.  sh'lomoh  de  maeini.  325" 

thcni  who  may  have  been  a  'sign  and  a  portent'  of  what  haji- 
pened  to  the  people  at  large  :  all  three  are  styled  '  my  servant,' 
as,  for  instance,  Moses  (Josh.  i.  i),  Isaiah  himself  (xx.  3),  and 
others  besides  ;  Israel  (xliv.  2 1) ;  and  similarly  the  King  Messiah 
(xlii.  i) :  since  the  text  is  intended  to  describe  each  of  these 
separately,  the  singular  number  is  used,  in  order  to  include 
evei-y  one  bearing  the  same  title.  With  the  exception  of  those 
which  have  been  specified,  viz.  the  particular  righteous  indi- 
viduals, the  nation  as  a  whole,  and  the  King  Messiah,  the  Lord's 
Anointed,  who  is  to  reign  over  them,  no  one  is  so  designated  ; 
but  in  saying  upon  them  (liii.  8),  the  prophet  already  lets  fall 
a  plural  word  to  shew  that  he  is  alluding  to  the  people.  We 
may  now  proceed  to  the  explanation  of  the  text. 

LII.  "  The  words  in  this  verse  express  all  that  either  the 
mouth  can  utter  or  the  heart  conceive  concerning  Israel's  future 
perfection  and  happiness.  Our  holy  Eabbis  have  revealed  to 
us  their  meaning  in  the  saying,  '  He  shall  be  higher  than  Abra- 
ham, lifted  up  above  Moses,  and  loftier  than  the  ministering 
angels,'  which  shews  that  his  true  perfection  will  consist,  first 
of  all,  in  his  perfecting  himself  as  far  as  possible  in  the  service, 
the  fear,  and  the  love  of  God,  and  afterwai'ds  in  conferring  the 
same  perfection  upon  others  as  is  done  by  the  Almighty  him- 
self ;  by  this  he  Avill  find  favour  in  the  eyes  of  God  and  man, 
and  will  attain  that  consummate  bliss  which  consists  in  cleaving 
to  God  as  closely  as  possible,  and  enjoy  the  brightness  of  his 
Shekhinah,  and  be  illumined  in  the  light  of  his  countenance. 
In  this  all  happiness  is  embraced. 

Now  Abraham  was  the  first  who  strove  to  perfect  himself  in 
the  service  of  God,  and  to  rise  higher  than  any  other  man  in 
fearing  him  and  loving  him,  so  as  even  not  to  withhold  from 
him  his  only  son.  Moses,  more  than  any  one  else  (according 
to  the  saying,  'Moses  was  just,  and  justified  many  :  the  justice  of 
many  shall  cleave  unto  him'),  helped  to  make  others  pei'fect ;  for 
through  him  the  Divine  LaAV  was  given  and  became  a  source 
of  instruction  for  Israel,  and  everything  which  we  possess  now, 


326  E.  sh'lomoh  de  marini.  [Hi.  14- 

or  wliicli  the  wise  of  future  generations  will  acquire,  is  derived 
from  him.  The  angels  are  those  who  cleave  to  the  Lord  of 
all  things,  and  stand  before  him  in  the  fruition  of  the  light  of 
his  Shekhinah  more  than  any  other  creatures,  in  order  that 
they  may  continue  holy  and  sepai-ate  from  matter.  But  the 
king  and  nation  here  spoken  of  will  one  day  ascend  far  above 
any  of  these  in  elevation  and  dignity  (as  it  is  said,  exceedmgly) : 
for  in  Abraham's  time  the  Law  was  not  yet  given,  and  what  the 
patriarch  did  was  done  of  his  own  righteous  choice  and  upright 
character — for  with  the  Highest  Mind  his  own  was  in  perfect 
harmony ;  but  he  who  lives  under  the  Law,  and  exerts  himself 
through  it  to  attain  that  dignity,  is  greater;  and  yet  even  Moses' 
teaching  did  not  extend  to  other  nations  besides  Israel.  But 
at  the  time  here  spoken  of  all  the  nations  '  will  turn  to  know 
the  Lord,'  and  happiness  will  become  universal ;  and  this,  too, 
through  Israel's  agency,  as  it  is  written  (Ix.  3),  'And  Gentiles 
shall  come  to  thy  light  and  kings  to  the  brightness  of  thy  rising.' 
And,  lastly,  the  angels  cleave  to  the  Lord  in  virtue  of  a  law  of 
mercy  from  the  Lord  (for  upon  this  condition  were  they  created) ; 
but  Israel  will  then  attain  their  position  through  the  merits  of 
their  own  deeds,  and  while  their  body  and  soul  are  still  united, 
as  it  is  written,  '  Thine  eyes  shall  gaze  upon  the  king  in  his 
beauty'  (xxxiii.  17)  ;  and  again,  'Eye  to  eye  shall  they  look  on 
when  the  Lord  returneth  to  Zion'  (Hi.  8).  "It  is  well  known 
that  all  the  early  successes  of  Israel,  and  the  other  events  of 
their  history,  since  the  time  that  they  became  a  nation,  did  not 
happen  in  the  natural  course  of  the  world ;  but  the  people  grew 
victorious  and  mighty  by  the  aid  of  signs  and  wonders ;  and 
similarly,  when  they  were  brought  low  as  a  punishment  for  their 
sins,  they  fell  to  the  very  lowest  dej^ths,  and  things  happened 
to  them  which  had  never  happened  to  any  other  nation  in  the 
earth.  At  such  a  strange  histoiy,  every  one  beholding  them 
will  he  astonished  and  amazed ;  or,  as  it  is  said  in  ^Ekhd  Rah- 
hdtld,  'There  are  three  prophets  who  began  their  prophecies 
with  IIow . . . ! — Moses,  Isaiah,  and  Jeremiah:  Moses  said,  "How 


^liii.  2.]  R,  sh'lomoh  de  marini.  327 

can  I  carry  alone  all  this  people?"  (Deut.  i,  12);  Isaiah,  "How 
hath  the  faithful  city  become  an  harlot!"  (i.  21);  Jeremiah, 
"How  (loth  the  city  sit  solitary!"  (Lam.  i.  i) — like  a  matron 
who  had  three  bridesmen,  of  whom  one  saw  her  in  her  pros- 
perity»  etc.'  In  the  same  way  Moses'  exclamation  was  made 
when  he  beheld  Israel  in  their  prosperity  and  splendour,  Isaiah's 
when  he  beheld  them  in  their  wantonness,  Jeremiah's  when 
he  l)eheld  them  in  their  shame ;  for  even  the  prophets  them- 
selves marvelled  at  Israel's  history,  wondering  how  these  things 
could  be  :  how  much  more  then  would  the  Gentiles  be  sur- 
prised !  And  so  it  is  said.  As  many  had  been  astonished  at 
thee,  on  account,  viz.,  of  all  the  successes  which  had  befallen  thee 
in  the  past,  so  tvas  his  countenance  marred  beyond  man,  etc., 
for  disgrace  will  fall  upon  this  nation  until  the  end,  for  in  pro- 
portion as  once  their  exaltation  was  great,  so  will  their  depres- 
sion be  great  likewise  when  the  Lord  has  hidden  his  face  from 
them ;  and  so  also  will  there  be  cause  for  wonder  when  it  re- 
verts to  its  normal  state,  and  ascends  to  an  elevation  higlier 
than  any  wliich  it  had  previously  enjoyed.  ^^  For  that  which 
they  have  not  seen,  etc.  :  these  words  perhaps  allude  to  the 
far  off  nations  of  the  earth  who  had  not  heard  the  fame  of 
them. 

LIIL  ^  Of  the  nations  in  Israel's  own  land  Avho  have  seen  the 
actual  words  of  Scripture,  the  prophet,  alluding  to  the  manner 
in  which,  devising  out  of  their  own  heart,  they  apply  them  to 
other  events,  announces  that  they  will  then  ask.  Who  was  there 
that  believed  in  this  distant  rumour  which  we  heard  1  and  the 
arm  of  the  Lord  (which  is  said  above  to  have  been  '  laid  bare,' 
lii.  10),  upon  tvhom  has  it  been  revealed  ?  for  we  ourselves  did 
not  conceive  the  matter  so.  (This  sense  follows  from  the  con- 
nexion with  the  succeeding  verses.)  ^  The  prophet  declares 
how  greatly  the  Gentiles  will  exert  themselves  to  tell  of  the 


"■  'Elcha  Rahbdthi,  c.  I  :  the  quotation   continues, — '  tlie  second  in  her 
wantonness,  and  the  third  in  her  shame.' 


328  n.  sh'lomoh  de  marini.  [Hii.  2™ 

ignominy  and  humiliation  of  the  nation,  affirming  that  they 
could  not  find  that  he  had  either  root  or  branch  which  would 
prosper,  but  that  he  was  both  needy  and  dejected,  in  want  of 
every  comfort.  Was  it  credible  that  it  would  be  reported 
that  a  people  which  'the  Lord  had  chosen  for  himself  would 
be  spoiled  and  deprived  of  every  worldly  enjoyment,  and,  in  ad- 
dition, suffer  exile  and  be  tossed  about  in  the  lands  of  strangers, 
wandering  about  in  search  of  bread  amid  reproaches  and  con- 
fusion of  face,  as  in  fact  is  actually  the  case?  for,  from  the 
day  that  we  were  exiled  from  our  land,  our  inheritance  'has 
been  turned  to  strangers,'  and  '  we  drink  our  waters  for  money,' 
although  at  the  beginning  the  wells  had  been  our  own,  and  on 
Israel's  account  the  showers  had  descended  upon  the  ground  out 
of  heaven,  and  the  plenty  had  extended  even  to  other  lands. 
But  now  all  this  is  reversed  :  '  the  handmaid  is  the  heir  of  her 
mistress'  (Prov.  xxx.  23),  and  woe  to  the  children  who  are  exiled 
from  their  father's  table  to  eat  the  bread  of  teai^  and  drink  the 
poisoned  water.  And  this  is  the  reason  why  they  continually 
cast  us  in  the  teeth,  saying.  If  the  truth  rests  with  you,  and  not 
with  us,  why  are  you  left  all  these  years  in  our  hands  for  us  to 
be  rulers  over  you  1  Is  the  Loi-d's  hand  shortened  that  he  cannot 
save  or  assist  you,  but  has  rejected  you  1  for  unless  we  had  taken 
charge  of  you,  and  given  you  room  to  dwell  in,  ye  would  have 
had  none  remaining,  but  Avould  have  been  all  dead  from  famine 
and  Avant.  Such  is  the  meaning  of  the  expression  as  a  sucker 
before  him — Israel's  gi'owtli  was  like  that  of  a  sucker  standing 
apart,  which  has  no  root  planted  in  the  earth,  but  sucks  in 
nourishment  out  of  some  other  place,  i.  e.  here,  the  land  of  the 
Gentiles.  In  addition  to  this,  however,  he  was  as  a  root  out  of 
the  dry  earth,  sprung  up,  so  to  speak,  from  a  poor  and  bitter 
root,  a  '  root  bearing  gall  and  wormwood ' — an  allusion  to  what 
seemed  to  them  his  destitution  and  insignificance.  In  the 
Bame  strain  they  continue,  he  had  no  form  nor  comeliness — 
enjoyed  no  perfection  whether  of  soul  or  bodj^,  no  supereminent 
qualities  of  mind,  no  wisdom  or  riches  or  glory,  no  regal  or 


-liii.  4.]  R.  sh'lomoii  de  jiarini.  329 

other  dominion  ;  but  when  ive  looked  at  him,  wc  found  in  him 
nothing  pleasant  to  our  eyes,  how  then,  seeing  man  judges 
only  by  the  sight  of  his  eyes,  could  we  possibly  desire  him  ? 
^  We  saw,  moreover,  that  it  was  a  people  spoiled  and  depressed 
to  such  an  extent,  as  to  have  lost  all  the  vigour  and  courage 
necessary  for  prevailing  over  its  oppressors ;  was  not  its  heart, 
like  the  heart  of  a  woman  in  travail,  '  fearful  and  afraid '  at 
everything,  so  that  '  the  noise  of  a  driven  leaf  pursued  them,' 
and  of  their  enemies  'a  single  one  would  chase  a  thousand,  and 
two  would  put  ten  thousand  to  flight  ]'  each  one  of  them,  too, 
being  a  man  of  pains  mid  Jcnoion  to  sickness,  a  man  upon  whom 
time  and  destiny  j)i-essed  hardly,  and  who  Avas  liable  to  every 
accident  and  every  disease.  And  as  we  beheld  in  him  all  these 
imperfections,  and  saw  besides  that  the  Lord  had  hidden  his 
face  from  him,  and  that  signs  and  wonders  were  no  longer 
wrought  for  him  as  in  the  days  of  old,  we  concluded  that  he  toas 
desjnsed,  and  so  we  esteemed  him  not ;  for  in  the  Babylonian 
captivity,  although  there  Israel  was  an  afflicted  and  needy  people, 
still  the  kings  of  Babylon  were  compelled  to  award  recognition 
to  Israel  on  account  of  the  signs  wrought  there  for  Hananiah, 
Misha'el,  and  'Azariah,  and  for  Daniel ;  and  again  in  the  Median 
captivity,  the  nations  were  forced  to  do  the  same  by  the  aid  of 
Mordekhai  and  Esther,  and  afterwards  in  the  Grecian,  by  the 
Hasmonaeans ;  in  this  captivity,  however,  no  such  sign  at  all 
has  ever  been  she-\vn.  Possibly,  however,  the  suffix  in  i:on  may 
point  back  to  the  Gentiles  themselves  ('  from  us '),  asserting  that 
the  reason  why  they  had  so  greatly  erred  was  because  the  truth 
had  been  hidden  from  them,  and  the  word  of  the  Lord  had  never 
reached  them,  and  they  had  never  seen  the  light  of  the  Law, 
but  were  as  the  blind  gi'oping  in  darkness.  *  'But  the  case  was 
not  as  we  thought :  on  the  contrary,  he  carried  our  sicknesses, 
for  it  was  we  who  were  really  sick,  and  the  ultimate  cause  of 
his  sufferings,  and  all  the  pujiishments  spoken  of,  should  have 
come  rightly  upon  us,  for  they  sinned  merely  by  accident, 
.  whereas  wc  have  sinned  in  accordance  with  our  inmost  nature. 


330  R.  sh'lomoii  de  marini,  [liii.  4. 

since  they  possessed  a  law  of  trutli,  to  which  we  hatl  no  access/ 
This  subject  has  been  treated  by  the  Eabbis  in  the  Midrash  on 
Cant.  i.  6,  'Look  not  down  on  me,  because  I  am  black:' — 'He 
carried  the  sickness,  and  bare  the  penalty  of  his  iniquity' — as 
the  text  says  (Amos  iii.  2),  '  Only  you  have  I  known  of  all  the 
families  of  the  earth ;  therefore  Avill  I  visit  upon  you  all  your 
iniquities ; '  for  Isi'ael  in  the  midst  of  the  nations  is  compared  to 
the  heart  in  the  midst  of  the  body,  for  as  the  heart,  being  of  a 
more  equable  constitution  and  jDurer  than  the  other  members, 
is  the  seat  of  the  living  soul,  so  Israel  in  its  very  root  and  sub- 
stance is  the  seat  of  Divine  truth.  Accordingly,  whatever  hap- 
pens to  Israel  as  compared  with  the  other  nations,  is  analogous 
to  what  happens  to  the  heart  as  compared  with  the  other  mem- 
bers of  the  body ;  so  that,  as  from  the  purity  of  its  blood,  and 
abundance  of  breath,  the  heart  has  a  clear  and  quick  perception 
of  any  emotion  which  may  strike  it — whether  it  be  anxiety,  or' 
sorrow,  or  fear,  or  resentment,  or  hatred,  or  love,  or  an  altera- 
tion in  climate  or  food,  or  change  of  position,  or  sleeping  or 
waking,  acting  upon  it — so  it  is  more  easily  affected  than  the 
other  members,  as  though  it  were  something  as  light  as  a  hair, 
and  is  consequently  exposed  to  more  diseases  than  they  are, 
although  at  the  same  time  far  stronger  and  better  able  speedily 
to  repel  anything  which  may  attack  it  (for  in  other  parts  of  the 
body  it  is  only  possible  to  arrest  a  disease  after  the  lapse  of  a 
considerable  time),  being  for  this  purpose  endowed  with  stronger 
health  than  the  other  organs.  Similarly,  Israel's  position 
among  the  Gentiles  is  such  that  the  Shekhinah  is  to  them  what 
the  living  soul  is  to  the  heart ;  and  as  the  strength  of  the  heart 
is  necessary  in  order  that  by  its  aid  the  soul  may  reside  in  the 
body,  so  this  nation  must  needs  have  perfect  health,  in  order 
that  through  it  the  Shekhinah  may  reside  in  the  world.  Thus, 
on  account  of  the  purity  and  strength,  which  are  characteristic 
of  Israel,  sickness  and  punishment  will  assail  him,  causing  him 
to  be  continually  in  sufiering  and  exile; 'and  this  is  the  reason 
why  their  iniquities  will  be  '  visited  upon  them '  without  delay, 


liii.  4.]  R.  sh'lomoh  de  marini.  331 

in  order,  viz.,  that  the  sickness  may  not  prevail  over  thcni  until 
the  measure  of  it  which  will  produce  complete  destruction  has 
been  filled  up.  Such  then  is  the  sense  of,  'You  only  have 
I  known ; '  for  in  proportion  to  the  degree  of  perfection  in  them 
are  they  '  known '  of  the  Lord.  This  is  the  cause  Avhy,  when 
they  even  sin  but  slightly,  they  are  still  punished :  the  Shekhi- 
nah  will  not  take  up  its  abode  in  them  unless  they  are  clear  from 
every  sin ;  they  are  therefoi'e  speedily  sensible  of  their  penalty. 
It  also  explains  why  Israel  experiences  such  sicknesses,  and 
why  they  are  restored  and  purified  so  quickly,  in  order,  viz., 
that  the  sin  may  not  linger  among  them  until  it  becomes  con- 
firmed, as  it  does  among  the  Gentiles,  of  whom  it  is  said  (Gen. 
XV.  1 6),  '  The  iniquity  of  the  Amorite  is  not  yet  full.'  All 
this  will  in  time  be  revealed  to  the  nations,  and  they  will  then 
confess,  saying,  '  Sicrely  he  carried  our  sicknesses ;'  it  was  we 
who  were  really  sick,  though  we  did  not  perceive  it,  whereas 
he,  by  his  natural  quickness,  perceived  it  readily ;  thus  the 
sickness  speedily  left  him,  and  he  was  prepared  to  receive  his 
cure.  In  addition,  however,  to  the  sore  blow  thus  decreed 
against  him  for  the  pm'pose  of  blotting  out  transgression,  we 
ourselves  made  our  hand  heavy  upon  him,  and  added  to 
his  pain,  and  this  our  pain  he  hare,  ox*,  in  the  Avords  of  the 
Psalmist's  comjjlaint,  '  Him  whom  thou  hast  smitten  they  perse- 
cute, and  tell  of  the  pains  of  them  that  thou  hast  wounded '  (Ps, 
Ixix.  27),  to  which  the  Divine  reply  is,  */ was  wroth  but  a  little, 
and  they  helped  forward  the  affliction'  (Zech.  i,  15).  The  omission 
of  the  word  Nin  is  noted  by  the  Masora  ^,  in  order  to  form  an 
allusion  to  the  passage,  'I  am  with  him  in  affliction'  (Ps.  xci.  15), 
and,  '  In  all  their  affliction  he  was  afflicted '  (Is.  Ixiii.  9),  mean- 
ing the  congregation  of  Isi-ael,  as  though  God  himself  sympa- 
thised in  the  sufferings  of  his  people.  Yet  we  thought  him 
stricken — thought  that  he  would  never  be  healed,  while,  in  fact, 


^  Some  MSS.  insert  «in  before  cVaD:  and  in  several  editions  (see  De 
Kossi,  or  the  Minhath  Skai)  tiiere  occurs  the  marginal  note  a'nj  N71  ""^j!  Nin. 


332  E,  sii'lomoii  de  maeini.  [liii.  s. 

his  sickness  was  tlic  very  cause  of  his  cure — smitten  of  God  and 
afflicted :  whereas  we  ourselves  were  all  the  time  smiting  him 
most  cruelly  with  our  own  hands.  Such  are  their  reflections 
on  the  first  statement  about  Israel's  humiliation.  ^  On  the 
second  ptatcmcut  (contained  in  the  words  '  despised  and  forloi'n 
of  meu'),  relating  to  his  insignificance,  they  confess  the  truth 
in  the  words,  ^vounded  for  our  transgressions,  admitting  that  all 
the  sin  and  imperfection  inherent  in  this  people  was  owing  to 
the  wickedness  of  the  nations  amongst  whom  they  were  mixed, 
and  who  had  become  a  snare  to  them;  that  from  the  time  when 
they  first  became  a  nation  in  the  land  of  T^gypt,  they  had  been 
defiled  by  the  idols  of  the  Egyptians,  and  after  they  had  entered 
into  Canaan,  they  had  followed  the  ways  of  the  Amorite,  the 
heathen  whom  they  presei'ved  alive  becoming  'pricks  in  their 
eyes,  and  thorns  in  their  sides,'  and  seducing  them  to  serve  their 
idols ;  that  afterwards,  when  they  were  in  exile  and  mingled 
among  the  Gentiles,  they  had  learnt  their  works ;  indeed,  had 
they  not  swerved  to  the  right  hand  or  to  the  left  of  the  words 
of  the  Law,  they  would  not  have  had  such  power  over  them,  as 
it  is  written  (Deut.  iv.  6),  '  And  ye  shall  keep  and  do  them,  for 
this  is  your  wisdom  and  your  understanding  before  the  eyes  of 
the  nations,'  etc.  And  this  is  what  is  alluded  to  in  the  Avords, 
*  Look  not  doAvn  upon  me,  because  I  am  black,  because  the 
sun,'  etc.  (Cant.  i.  6).  And  in  despising  him,  for  being  devoid 
of  all  vigoui'  and  courage,  they  noticed  that  this  was  all  decreed 
upon  him,  as  it  is  written,  '  I  will  bring  faintness  into  their 
heart  in  the  lands  of  their  enemies,'  etc.  (Lev.  xxvi.  36) ;  and 
again,  '  How  could  one  chase  a  thousand,  etc.,  except  their  Rock 
had  sold  them  and  the  Lord  had  delivered  themi'  (Deut.  xxxii. 
30.)  Thus  Israel's  depression  caused  such  a  change  in  their 
relative  position  that,  as  the  one  rose  the  other  sank,  as  it  is 
written,  '  And  it  shall  come  to  pass  that,  when  thou  shalt  have 
the  dominion,  thou  shalt  break  his  yoke  from  off  thy  neck' 
(Gen.  xxvii.  40).  And  all  this  may  be  understood  from  the 
language  here,  Tlt^  chastisement  of  our  i^eace  was  upon  him,  and 


liii.  6.]  E,.  sh'lomoh  de  marini.  333 

h}j  Ids  stripes  loe  are  healed.  **  They  will  tlien,  the  prophet  pro- 
ceeds, be  amazed  that  thoy  had  never  perceived  their  error :  if, 
indeed,  all  the  other  nations  in  the  world  had  been  obsei'ving 
one  religion,  and  Israel  another,  and  they  had  enjoyed  pros- 
perity while  Israel  had  met  with  the  reverse,  then  it  might 
have  been  possible  for  them  to  snppose  wrongly  that  the  ti'utli 
rested  with  them  and  that  Israel  was  in  error.  On  the  contrary, 
however,  the  different  nations  and  also  their  religions  arc  divided 
amongst  themselves,  each  repudiating  the  authority  of  their 
neighbour's,  and,  at  the  same  time,  they  each  enjoy  dominiou 
and  power  in  the  world,  so  that  neither  they  themselves  nor 
the  kingdoms  over  which  they  hold  sway  can  be  any  guarantee 
or  sign  of  the  truth  of  their  religion ;  and  the  decline  and  fall 
of  Israel's  sovereignity  can  afford  no  argument  that  true  religion 
is  not  to  be  found  among  them :  the  more  so,  inasmuch  as, 
though  they  attempt  to  raise  unfair  charges  against  it,  all 
nations  practically  admit  the  divine  origin  of  their  faith.  And 
so  they  say  here,  All  ive  like  sheep  ivent  astray,  alleging  in  proof 
of  this  that  we  turned  each  to  his  own  way, — we  did  not  all 
agree  in  one  opinion  or  one  faith,  but  repudiated  each  others' 
convictions ;  the  reason,  however,  why  we  remained  in  pros- 
perity, whereas  Israel  was  in  distress,  was  because  the  Lord 
laid  on  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all.  The  explanation  of  these 
words  is,  that  the  cause  of  Israel's  being  exiled  from  their  land 
was  properly  their  own  iniquities ;  but  the  cause  which  pro- 
longed the  withdrawal  of  the  Divine  blessing  and  the  contumely 
of  the  w^orld,  Avas  their  idolatry;  unquestionably,  if  all  the 
Gentiles  had  now  been  calling  upon  the  name  of  the  Lord,  to 
serve  him  with  one  accord,  the  world  would  have  been  rege- 
nerated ;  but  his  name  being  profaned  amongst  them  is  the 
occasion  of  pain  and  harm  accruing  to  Israel  while  they  are  in 
exile.  This  condition  of  things  is  alluded  to  by  our  Rabbis  in 
an  Haggadah  {B'rdkhoth,  §  i): — It  is  reported  in  the  name 
of  R.  Me'ir,  that  at  the  hour  of  sunrise,  when  all  the  kings  of 
the  East  and  of  the  West  place  their  crowns  upon  their  heads, 


834  E,  sh'lomoh  de  marini.  [liii.  7- 

and  bow  tlown  to  the  sun,  fortbwitli  the  Almighty  is  proToked  : 
it  is  asserted  to  be  a  sign  of  bis  provocation  that  at  the  same 
moment  the  red  comb  of  the  cock  is  changed  to  white.  Tlie 
meaning  of  this  is  explained  by  the  commentator  [Rasbi]  to  be, 
that  during  the  single  moment  of  his  provocation  an  eclipse 
takes  place  in  the  world  below,  and  the  greatest  distress  accrues 
from  it  upon  all  liNing ;  in  its  most  poignant  form,  however, 
it  rests  upon  Israel  in  pai'ticular,  who,  consequently,  are  the 
most  deeply  affected  by  it.  "^  Besides  this,  however,  in  conse- 
quence of  our  error  lie  wtis  oppressed  and  spurned  by  us  all 
(for  there  is  no  hatred  like  the  hatred  of  religion),  every  one 
who  bore  the  name  of  God's  '  servant '  being  seized  for  us  to 
punish  him  with  sore  chastisements,  because  he  would  not  ac- 
knowledge our  doctrines,  and  we  even  withheld  from  him  per- 
mission to  speak,  so  that  he  could  not  open  his  mouth  at  all  for 
the  purpose  of  explaining  and  demonsti'atiug  the  principles  of 
his  faith  :  truth  we  cast  down  to  the  ground,  and  the  false  reli- 
gion flourished  and  spread  to  such  an  extent  that,  as  a  sheep 
led  to  the  slaughter,  all  those  who  came  forward  to  oppose  it, 
or  to  call  in  question  its  principles,  were  slain  with  indignity  by 
hundreds  and  thousands,  in  order  that  its  adherents  might  per- 
severe unshaken.  Moreover,  we  devised  schemes  of  wickedness 
against  them  to  plunder  their  goods,  so  that  they  became  as  a 
lamb  dumb  before  lier  shearers,  and  opened  not  their  onotitli,  for 
none  can  j^lead  his  case  with  effect  against  those  stronger  than 
himself.  *  We,  moreover,  attacked  him  with  our  arguments 
when  we  beheld  this  people  taken  from  sovereignty  and  from 
judgment ;  for  in  the  days  of  old  it  was  called  the  people  of  the 
Lord,  the  Divine  providence  attended  it  continually,  and  so 
great  was  the  love  displayed  for  it,  that  God  ordained  that  thrice 
in  the  year  it  should  appear  at  Jerusalem  in  order  that  its  mem- 
bers might  submit  themselves  before  him,  as  a  son  in  excessive 
love  before  his  father,  and  any  one  of  the  other  nations  who 
touched  it  was  '  like  a  man  touching  the  pupil  of  his  eye.'  At 
.length,  however,  God  removed  his  own  from  under  his  hand. 


-liii.  9.]  R.  sh'lomoh  de  marini.  335 

and  Israel  was  smitten  with  great  and  sore  judgments,  and  now 
we  see  it  disgraced  still  more,  for,  instead  of  loving  it,  he  has 
rejected  it,  and  its  enemies,  or  whoever  else  may  desire  to  mock 
it,  trample  it  under  foot  and  devour  it,  none  offering  '  to  plead 
his  cause  that  he  might  he  bound  up'  (Jer.  xxx.  13),  or  to 
avenge  him.  And  if  that  generation  had  prolonged  its  exist- 
ence in  the  world,  and  not  been  wholly  brought  to  an  end,  who 
would  declare  it,  or  think  anything  of  iti  for  'wherein  was  he 
accounted  of  in  our  eyes?'  it  seemed  rather  as  if  Israel  no 
longer  existed,  for  we  thought  he  was  cut  off  from  tJte  land  of 
ilie  living,  ever  saying,  '  There  is  no  salvation  for  him  in  God ' 
(Ps.  iii.  2) ;  he  is  left  however  in  the  world  in  order  not  to 
become  a  proverb  to  us.  And  when  he  attempted  to  convince 
his  fellow-citizens  that  he  should  not  be  so  treated  and  jiun- 
ished,  we  all  exclaimed.  For  the  transgression  of  my  j)^ojple 
there  is  a  stroke  ujpon  them — a  saying  which  is  the  reverse  of 
the  text  (Zeph.  iii.  6  f.),  'I  have  cut  off  nations,  their  towers 
are  destroyed :  only  fear  thou  me,  only  receive  instruction  ! ' 
®  It  is  possible  that  the  subject  of  gave  may  be  '  my  people '  in 
the  last  verse,  the  Gentiles  here  declaring  that  they  had  treated 
Israel  ignominiously  in  two  respects :  for  (i)  Israel  made  its 
grave  with  the  loicJced,  every  man  among  them  being  buried  with 
the  burial  of  the  wicked,  '  his  flesh '  being  '  pained  upon  him,' 
and  his  soul  going  to  destruction ;  and  {2)  they  esteemed  him 
as  the  Hell  in  his  death,  for  the  expression  '  rich '  is  used  gene- 
rally as  a  term  of  reproach  for  one  who  trusts  and  glories  in 
his  riches,  as  it  is  written,  '  And  the  rich  man  answereth 
roughly'  (Pi'ov.  xviii.  23),  'The  wealth  of  the  rich  is  his  strong 
city'  (verse  11),  and  similarly  elsewhere.  The  meaning  thus 
is,  that  this  nation,  which  is  fired  with  the  lust  of  gold,  and 
of  accumulating  riches  not  by  just  means,  but  by  robbery  and 
fraud,  will  have  to  relinquish  all  their  gains  before  they  have 
finished  half  their  days,  and  that  their  latter  end  will  be  so 
ignoble  that  they  will  be  thought  to  have  been  wicked  before 
both  heaven  and  earth.     Because  he  did  no  violence,  etc.,  i.  e. 


336  R.  sh'lomoh  de  maeini.  [liii,  lo- 

because,  in  keeping  the  Law,  lie  erred  neither  in  intention  nor 
in  act,  and  his  end  justified  his  l)cginning,  shewing  that 
Israel  had  been  the  choicest  of  the  human  race,  now  the  cause 
had  appeared  for  whicli  the  Almighty  had  so  long  confined  him 
in  exile.  '°  In  truth  so  little  had  God  rejected  or  abhorred 
Israel,  that  his  lileasure  and  delight  had  alwaj's  been  in  him  : 
it  was  only  in  order  to  purify  him  that  he  bruised  Mm,  and  in 
order  to  do  good  to  him  in  the  end  that  7ie  made  him  to  be 
sick.  So  our  liabbis  teach  in  B'rdkhoth :  Said  Habba,  Whom- 
soever the  Lord  hath  jileasure  in,  he  bruiseth  him  with  chastise- 
ments ;  for  is  it  not  said  that  '  the  Lord  was  pleased " — not  to 
consume  him  utterly,  but  merely — '  to  bruise  and  sicken  him,'  in 
order  that  he  might  turn  to  him  with  all  his  heart  1  for  those 
who  are  bruised  with  suffering  are  nearer  to  God  than  other 
men,  as  it  is  written,  '  With  him  that  is  of  a  bruised  and  humble 
spirit  I  do  dwell '  (Is.  Ivii.  15) ;  and,  'A  heart  broken  and  bruised, 
O  God,  thou  wilt  not  despise'  (Ps.  li.  17).  The  sick  person 
whose  material  strength  is  thus  exhausted  is  strong  in  intellect, 
and  he  is  protected  by  the  Lord, — as  the  Rabbis  say",  'The 
Sh'khinah  is  above  the  pillow  of  the  sick;'  and  for  the  same 
reason  the  physical  strength  of  this  people  was  prostrated,  in 
order  that  its  heart  might  be  bowed  down,  and  that  it  might 
be  able  to  cast  off  its  unclean  imagination,  and  be  left  pure  and 
innocent  (as  it  is  written,  i.  25,  'And  I  will  purify  as  with  lye 
thy  dross,  and  remove  all  thy  tin').  Thus,  if  its  soul  makes 
a  tresjKiss-offering,  i.  e.  if  it  accepts  its  trial  in  a  spirit  of  love, 
and  feels  that  this  is  the  reason  for  which  it  is  sent  into  cap- 
tivity, and  '  rejoiceth  not  unto  exultation '  among  the  Gentiles, 
nor  is  mingled  with  them,  and  forgets  not  Jerusalem,  but  prays 
continually  that  it  may  still  return  to  '  take  its  part  in  the 
Lord's  inheritance,'  and  to  serve  him  with  an  undivided  heart, 
then  he  will  see  seed,  have  lomj  days,  and  the  Lord's  2^leasure 


e  Thalm.  Bab.,  NWarim,  40". 


-liii.  II.]  R.  sh'lomoh  de  marini.  337 

toill  prosper  in  his  hand.  In  tliese  words  are  described  three 
great  consuininations,  for  which  we  now  are  looking.  The  first 
of  these  is  tlie  complete  redemption  at  the  time  of  the  Resur- 
rection, when  '  the  heart  of  the  fathers  will  be  turned  to  the 
children,  and  the  heart  of  the  children  to  their  fathers '  who 
perished  miserably,  being  mart}Ted  for  the  sacredness  of  God ; 
all  these  will  then  behold  one  another  and  delight  themselves 
together.  The  second  is,  the  assurance  that  they  will  never  again 
go  into  captivity,  but  will  prolong  their  days,  as  it  is  written, 
'  The  youth  shall  die  an  hundred  years  old'  (Ixv.  20);  and  again, 
'He  hath  swallowed  up  death  for  ever'  (xxv,  8):  the  same 
idea  is  expressed  by  the  Rabbis  when  they  say  d  that  they  will 
never  return  to  their  dust,  but  that  after  many  years  have  passed 
over  them,  the  substance  of  their  bodies  will  be  made  as  pure 
as  heaven  itself,  and  again  become  incorruptible — as  is  detailed 
at  length  by  R.  Abraham  ha-Levi  in  his  exposition  of  the  Bless- 
ing at  the  new  Moon.  And  the  third  is,  that  by  the  agency  of 
Israel  all  other  nations  will  become  worthy  to  '  know  the  Lord, 
and  to  serve  him  with  one  accord,'  and  that  in  his  light  they 
will  all  see  the  light  of  the  truth.  "  The  text  bears  witness 
that  so  it  was :  in  particular,  of  the  just  who  were  to  be  found 
at  all  pei'iods  in  Israel,  and  who  were  put  to  death  in  the  cause 
of  truth,  not  one  ever  felt  anxiety,  or  seemed  to  be  sensible  of 
all  that  he  was  suffering,  but  accepted  it  with  gladness,  in  the 
anticipation  of  this  exalted  perfection.  Out  of  the  travail  of  his 
soul  lie  will  see,  considering,  viz,  that  all  is  for  his  advantage,  and 
ha  satisfied,  and  find  pleasure  in  the  thought  that,  as  Scripture 
says  (Prov.  xxxi.  25),  'Strength  and  honour  are  her  clothing, 
and  she  laugheth  at  the  future,'  i.  e.  the  soul  of  the  righteous 
sings  and  rejoices  even  while  still  under  the  weight  of  affliction 
and  misei'y,  because  it  looks  hopefully  foi^ward  to  the  future, 
to  the  day  when  it  will  receive  its  full  reward,  and  'find  its 
delight  in  the  Lord:'  and  hence  also  its  mind  rests  contented, 

^  Thalm.  Bab.,  Sanhedriu,  gs". 
Z 


338  R.  sti'loafoh  de  marini.  [liii.  12. 

even  while  united  with  the  body  in  this  life.  Similarly,  Israel 
in  the  travail  of  its  soul  will  look  and  he  satisfied,  watching  for 
the  day  of  Deliverance.  He  will  justify  my  riyhteous  servant 
by  means  of  many,  i.  e.  he  will  take  an  example  from  what 
happens  to  the  righteous  in  his  generation,  who,  although  know- 
ing well  that  he  is  perfectly  upright,  and  a  servant  of  God,  still 
passes  his  days  in  pains  and  in  the  midst  of  many  and  sore 
calamities.  Such,  indeed,  is  the  life  of  the  majority  of  the 
just ;  but  their  mind  is  appeased  by  the  recollection  that  all  is 
to  conduce  to  their  ultimate  happiness,  and  that  the  glorious 
promises  cannot  be  realised  except  through  suffering ;  for  '  re- 
proofs of  correction  are  the  way  to  life'  (Prov.  vi.  23).  To  the 
same  purport  Scripture  says,  'Who  is  the  man  that  will  live, 
and  not  see  death  continually?'  for  even  during  life  he  is  con- 
sumed away  through  the  trouble  of  delivering  his  soul  from  the 
power  of  the  grave.  This  is  not  possible  otherwise,  as  it  is  said, 
'  If  a  man  dies  he  will  live,  and  if  he  lives  he  will  die,'  whence 
it  follows  that  the  fate  of  the  righteous  will  befall  Israel  as 
well  (as  it  is  written,  'I  am  become  a  portent  unto  many'); 
and  hence  he  knows  that  he  will  never  attain  this  great  consum- 
mation except  by  first  bearing  the  yoke  of  a  protracted  exile. 
He  will  bear  their  iniquities,  as  the  righteous  bears  those  of  his 
own  generation.  ^^  Because,  then,  he  hath  done  all  this,  tJiere- 
fore  I  will  allot  him  this  happiness  ivith  many,  for  the  numbers 
of  his  children  will  be  multiplied,  and  all  the  Gentiles  in  whose 
midst  they  are  left  will  stand  in  awe  of  his  righteousness  :  with 
tlie  miyhty  he  shall  divide  sfoil,  when  he  rises,  namely,  to  a 
dignity  superior  to  that  of  man — as  our  Rabbis  saye,  'Before 
the  righteous  the  angels  will  sing  songs,'  for  he  who  '  divides 
spoil'  is  in  the  enjoyment  of  something  which  did  not  before 
fall  to  his  share.  And  this  privilege  will  be  is,  because  he 
lioured  out  his  soul  to  die,  resigning  himself  to  suffer  martyr- 


Thalm.  Bab.,  Babha  Bathra,  75". 


liii.  12.]  K.  sh'lomoh  de  marini.  339 

dom  for  the  sanctity  of  the  Name  of  Heaven,  and  so  was  awarded 
the  right  of  acquiring  a  higher  life  than  other  men ;  and  be- 
cause he  carried  tlie  sin  of  many  and  interceded  for  the  trans- 
gressors, praying  continually  that  the  world  might  be  restored 
througli  the  establishment  of  the  kingdom  of  the  Almighty, 
and  that  all  men  might  call  upon  the  name  of  the  Lord,  to 
serve  him  with  a  whole  heart.  He  was  just  and  justified  many  : 
therefore  the  justice  of  the  many  shall  cleave  unto  him,  and  he 
shall  receive  a  reward  equivalent  to  them  all  f. 

'  Compare  pp.  273,  2S7. 


Z  2 


XLV.     R.  YIZHAQ  LOPEZ. 

The  Nazakene  : — Hast  thou  not  magnified  thy  tongue  above 
all  thy  name  in  saying  that  in  our  hands  are  scales  of  deceit, 
and  that  they  have  deceived  us,  and  prevented  our  understand- 
ing from  comprehending  mysteries  1  is  it  not  rather  you  your- 
selves who  are  deaf  and  dumb,  and  who  grope  about  like  the 
blind  1  Behold  here,  now,  is  the  conclusion  of  my  words  :  '  We 
have  sought  it  out ;  so  is  it : '  every  mouth  amongst  us  con- 
fesses that  all  your  words  are  '  dead  flies  which  cause  a  stink,'' 
whilst  we  possess  the  ' a^iothecary's  ointment'  which  poureth  forth 
concerning  '  the  word  spoken  by  the  king,'  and  that  unto  which 
'  his  commandment  reacheth,'  so  that  even  the  shades  below  will 
be  sensible  of  it,  hoAv  much  more  '  they  that  dwell  in  houses  of 
clay,'  when  their  companions  rise  up  against  them,  exclaiming, 
Surely  we  are  not  guilty;  we  are  true  men,  seeing  that  we 
believe  in  Jesus  our  Messiah.  I  will  now,  thei-efore,  bring  thee 
proofs  from  the  prophecy  of  Isaiah  how  he  came  and  endured 
great  sufferings,  and  afterwards  died  for  the  redemption  of  his 
creatures  who  were  in  Gehenna,  and  rescued  them  from  the 
hand  of  Satan  Avho  was  assailing  them ;  if,  therefore,  thou  art 
willing  to  acknowledge  the  ti'uth,  thou  wilt  find  thyself  unable 
to  reply  to  all  that  I  shall  adduce.  The  prophecy  is  as 
follows. 

LII.  ^^ Behold  my  servant,  etc.  Of  whom  are  these  words  spoken 
except  of  Jesus  ?  and  the  saying  of  your  Rabbis  upon  this  verse, 
*  He  shall  be  higher  than  Abraham,'  etc.,  although  it  is  applied 
by  them  to  the  King  jNIesslah,  how  is  it  possible  to  adapt  its 


Hi,  liii.]  R.  YIZHAQ   LOPEZ.  341 

language  to  any  child  of  man  1  for  of  Moses  it  is  said  that  'no 
prophet  ever  arose  in  Israel  like  him ; '  and  there  is  no  essence 
loftier  than  that  of  the  angels  except  the  Divine  :  you  cannot, 
then,  apply  the  verse  to  any  but  our  Messiah,  who  is  God  and 
man.  As  many,  etc.,  i.  e.  notwithstanding  his  exalted  dignity, 
yet  many  were  astonished  at  him,  because  his  countenance  was 
so  maiTed ;  in  other  words,  because  his  fleshly  appearance  was 
man'ed  by  his  sufferings,  and  by  the  death  which  ensued  upon 
his  crucifixion.  So  will  he  sprmkle,  etc.,  i.  e.  rule  over  many 
nations,  and  kings  will  shut  their  mouths  at  him  when  they  see 
his  miracles. 

LIII.  ^  Who  believed  ?  etc.  to  be  understood  in  its  usual 
sense.  Despised,  and  a  man  of  pains,  viz.  on  account  of  the 
many  sufferings  and  indignities  which  you  heaped  upon  him. 
DTIPN  n31D,  as  though  to  say  that  God  was  smitten  and  afflicted 
by  bearing  our  distresses.  By  his  stripes  we  are  healed,  i.  e. 
by  his  death,  for  by  it  the  iniquity  common  to  all  was  atoned 
for,  on  account  of  which  all  mankind  were  liable  to  Gehenna. 
All  %ve  like  sheep,  etc.,  for,  before  he  came,  all  the  children  of 
the  world  were  in  error  on  account  of  the  iniquity  that  was  in 
their  hands ;  but  when  he  came,  the  Lord  laid  on  him  the  ini- 
quity of  all  his  creatures.  As  a  sheep,  etc.,  i.  e.  in  his  love  and 
goodwill  towards  us,  he  endured  death  for  the  redemption  of 
our  souls.  He  ivas  cut  off  from  the  land  of  the  liring,  and  for 
the  transgression  of  his  2yeople  death  and  suffering  came  upon 
him.  He  made  his  grave  with  the  luicked,  because,  when  they 
crucified  him,  two  thieves  were  hung  beside  him,  he  being  in 
their  midst.  The  Lord  luas  pleased  to  bruise  him,  etc.,  in  order, 
namely,  to  cancel  the  spiritual  penalty  which  had  passed  upon 
all  for  the  sin  of  our  first  parent.  Now,  therefore,  open  thine 
eyes  and  see  how,  throughout  the  Parashah,  the  prophet  speaks 
of  Jesus  our  Messiah  in  a  manner  which  thou  wilt  not  be  able 
to  refute. 

The  Jew  : — Thou  Rock  of  all  the  ages,  wherefore  wilt  thou 
chasten  us  for  ever,  and  punish  us  through  such  long  years,  that 


342  R.  YIZHAQ  LOPEZ.  [Hi,  Hii. 

there  is  none  left  amongst  us  to  stand  up  before  the  heathen  ] 
0  reveal,  now,  thy  glory  upon  us,  that  all  the  nations  may  know 
that  thou  art  the  God  of  gods,  and  that  all  those  may  be  put 
to  confusion  who  make  their  boast  in  idols,  like  thee  [0  Naza- 
rene]  and  thy  companions  in  error,  when  thou  declarest  that 
this  Parashah  refers  to  Jesus  your  Messiah :  does  not  this 
opinion  of  thine  contain  flaws  without  number,  which  in  the 
eyes  of  reason  ruin  it  utterly  ?  Since,  however,  it  is  from  the 
verses  of  this  Parashah  more  than  from  all  the  rest  of  Scripture 
that  you  gain  strengtii  for  your  arguments  against  us,  do  not 
lay  it  to  my  charge  if  I  dwell  upon  it  at  some  length,  in  order 
that  you  may  understand  how  all  your  assertions  are  but  words 
of  vanity,  and  as  a  wind  that  passeth  by  bringing  nothing  with 
it,  that  the  prophet's  words  will  not,  for  countless  reasons,  bear 
the  meaning  which  you  would  assign  to  them,  and  that  they  do 
not  in  the  remotest  degree  allude  to  Jesus.  Our  Eabbis  offer 
two  explanations  of  this  Parashah, — some  referring  it  to  Messiah 
our  righteousness,  as,  for  instance,  Yonathan  ben  Uzziel,  who  is 
followed  by  many  of  our  other  doctors  in  the  various  Midrashim, 
and  Nahmanides ;  while  others,  as  R.  Joseph  Qamhi,  and  his 
son,  R.  David  Qamhi,  and  Rashi,  apply  it  to  Israel,  who,  they 
say,  is  here  called  by  the  Almighty  his  '  servant,'  as  often  else- 
where in  the  same  prophet.  Tu  support  of  the  latter  view  it 
is  pointed  out  further  that  the  preceding  and  subsequent  Para- 
shahs  are  strongly  in  its  fsivour :  immediately  before  (lii.  12) 
Isaiah  was  predicting  the  gathering  together  of  the  exiles  of 
Israel,  and  immediately  afterwards  the  Parashah  beginning. 
Shout,  0  barren  one  (liv.  i),  is  filled  with  glorious  promises 
descriptive  of  the  same  events :  it  is  urged,  therefore,  that  the 
Parashah  in  the  middle  must  of  necessity  be  explained  of  Israel 
likewise.  And  this  explanation  is  the  right  one  ;  for  even  those 
who  interpret  it  as  a  whole  of  the  Messiah  (as  Yonathan  ben 
Uzziel),  nevertheless  admit  that  some  parts  refer  to  Israel :  such 
also  was  the  opinion  of  the  other  doctors  alluded  to,  there  being  in- 
deed numerous  obstacUb  in  the  Avay  of  explaining  it  in  any  other 


lii,  liii.]  R.  YIZHAQ   LOPEZ.  343 

way.  But  in  addition  to  this,  you  will  find  yourself,  on  many 
other  grounds,  unable  to  succeed  in  the  attempt  to  explain  it 
of  Jesus.  I.  The  prophet  says,  My  servant  7''2ti'S  but  how  can 
this  apply  to  God  1  if  you  suppose  it  to  mean  '  shall  have  under- 
standing or  knowledge,'  then  God,  just  because  he  is  God,  is  know- 
ledge itself,  and  knows  all  things  from  eternity  and  to  eternity. 
How,  then,  could  the  prophet  utter  such  a  prediction  of  him, 
as  though  he  were  now  deficient  in  understanding,  and  the  time 
would  one  day  come  when  he  would  acquire  it  ?  And  if  you 
suppose  it  to  mean  '  shall  prosper '  (as  i  Sam.  xviii.  1 4),  was 
his  pi'osperity  or  success,  then,  carnal  or  spiritual  1  for  '  success- 
ful '  and  '  not  successful '  cannot  be  predicated  rightly  [of  God], 
besides  which  we  know,  from  the  history  of  his  last  moments, 
that  Jesus  did  not  'have  success.'  2.  How  can  you  suppose 
that  God  calls  him  his  'servant?'  how  could  God  call  one  who 
was  of  the  self-same  substance  with  himself  his  'servant^'  are 
not  'master'  and  'servant*  two  distinct  terms,  each  exclusive 
of  the  other  %  and  if  you  say  that  there  are  three  Persons,  but 
one  God  in  '  Substantia,'  '  Potentia,'  and  '  Habitus,'  yet  how  can 
you  call  the  King  of  the  highest  potentates  a  'servant?'  Nor 
can  you  reply  that  this  word  is  used  relatively  to  his  manhood, 
because  the  expressions  'shall  understand,'  'shall  be  high  and 
exalted,  and  lofty  exceedingly,'  are  not  applicable  to  his  man- 
hood, but  only  to  what  you  consider  to  be  his  Godhead  ;  accord- 
ingly, 'Ibn  'Ezra  remarks  that  the  expression  shall  understand 
does  not  suit  the  body,  because  the  body,  even  whilst  living, 
does  not  possess  such  an  attribute  :  this  being  the  case,  then,  it 
can  only  apply  to  his  soul ;  in  other  words,  to  the  Godhead.  And 
if  you  urge  that  he  is  called  a  '  servant '  with  reference  to  the 
time  during  which  he  was  in  the  form  of  man,  and  that  he 
was  made  God  and  King  only  after  his  death,  then  is  not  the 
saying  of  Solomon  fulfilled  in  him,  'Under  thi-ee  things  doth 

the  earth  tremble imder  a  servant,  when  he  becometh 

king  ?^  (Prov.  xxx.  2?.)  And  how  can  he  have  undergone  the 
change  and  accident  of  death,  when  the  prophet  himself  says. 


344  R.  YizHAQ  LOPEZ.  [iii,  liii, 

'T  the  Lord  change  noti'  (Mai.  iii.  6.)  Tims  you  refute  your- 
self. 3.  How  can  the  words  shall  he  kiyh,  etc.,  which  relate 
evidently  to  future  time,  be  made  to  adapt  themselves  to 
liiui  ]  Tell  me  when  this  exaltation  took  place :  was  it  while 
he  occupied  the  position  of  a  man,  in  things  pertaining  to 
the  body,  or  while  he  was  God  ]  if  you  suppose  the  former, 
you  then  omit  to  mention  that  Jesus  never  was  elevated  or 
exalted  at  all  :  so  that  the  words  here  were  never  fulfilled  iu 
him — on  the  contrary,  he  was  condemned  to  death,  exactly  as 
might  happen  to  any  other  unimportant  person,  and  as  in  fact 
you  contend  is  foi'ctold  by  Isaiah  himself — while,  if  you  suppose 
the  latter,  then  the  announcement  is  an  idle  one,  and  why  should 
the  prophet  have  made  it  1  for  God,  just  because  he  is  God,  is  for 
ever  'high  and  exalted,  and  inhabiteth  eternity'  (Ivii.  15):  how 
then  can  a  period  be  predicted  when  he  is  to  become  high  and 
exalted  1  And  who,  further,  ever  supposed  that  originally  God 
was  lowly  and  humble,  and  that  he  only  afterwards  would  be 
exalted  ?  is  not  such  a  supposition  contrary  to  reason  ?  4.  The 
prophet,  speaking  in  the  second  person,  says  'at  thee'  (Hi.  14) ; 
but  if  he  had  been  alluding  to  Jesus,  he  must  have  written  '  at 
him:^  for  Isaiah  is  here  addressing  the  persons  to  whom  the 
prophecy  was  delivered.  5.  He  says.  So  knarred  tvas  his  coun- 
tenance, etc.  :  now  elsewhere  you  assert  that  the  prophet  calls 
him  a  '  flourishing  olive  tree,  beautiful  with  well-favoured  fmit ' 
(Jer.  xi.  I '6),  and  that  David  calls  him  'fairer  than  the  children 
of  men'  (Ps.  xlv.  3),  but  now  you  maintain  the  reverse:  at  the 
same  time  the  language  here  accords  closely  with  the  words 
below,  He  liad  no  form,  etc.,  and,  A  man  of  j)ains,  etc., — ex- 
pressions which,  one  and  all,  teach  that  he  was  naturally  trou- 
bled by  melancholy,  and  was  also  of  weak  constitution  and 
feeble  frame.  The  facts,  however,  were  otherwise ;  for  I  know 
well  that  it  is  not  recorded  anywhere,  either  in  your  owu  New 
Testament,  or  in  the  writings  of  your  wise  men,  that  Jesus  was 
thus  afflicted  ;  he  is  always  described  as  young  and  handsome, 
'ruddy,  and  withal  of  a  beautiful  countenance'  (i  Sam.  xvi.  12). 


lii,  liii.]  H.  YiZHAQ,  LOPEZ.  345 

Moreover,  his  constitution  was  so  regular  that  he  never  had  a 
pain — not  even  a  headache — up  to  the  day  of  his  death  :  how 
then  can  you  speak  of  him  as  '  a  man  of  pains '  and  '  known  of 
sickness,'  phrases  which  would  only  be  applicable  to  one  who  was 
constantly  ailing  1  If  you  answer  that  these  words  have  refer- 
ence to  his  death,  every  one's  countenance  is  altered  when  he 
is  dead,  so  that  he  could  not,  on  this  account  alone,  be  described 
as  '  marred  beyond  men  : '  moreover,  the  expi'essions  in  question 
belong  to  one  who  is  still  living,  since  the  sufferings  which  he 
endured  in  the  hour  of  death  would  not  be  spoken  of  as  a  '  sick- 
ness,' but  rather  as  a  'blow'  (i  Kings  ii.  25,  29)  or  mishap 
falling  upon  him,  6.  It  is  said  that  he  carried  our  sicknesses 
and  bare  our  pains :  expressions  which  you  cannot  explain  of 
the  suflferings  borne  by  souls  in  Gehenna  for  the  sin  of  their 
first  parent,  whence  Jesus  might  have  released  them ;  because, 
forsooth,  our  first  parent  suffered  for  his  sin  a  spiritual  penalty, 
gouig  down  to  Gehenna  and  remaining  there  :  this,  however, 
I  cannot  concede,  for  thei'e  is  no  mention  to  be  found  of  it, 
either  in  the  command  given  to  Adam,  or  in  the  penalty  or 
curse  imposed  upon  him  *>.  The  words  '  thou  shalt  surely  die,' 
from  which  you  derive  the  idea  of  a  spiritual  penalty,  do  not 
necessarily  imply  this :  for  we  find  the  same  phrase  used  upon 
otl>er  occasions  where  you  cannot  possibly  so  interpret  it ;  does 
not  Nathan  say  to  David,  in  the  affair  of  Bathsheba,  '  The  child 
tha4;  is  born  to  thee  shall  surely  die^  though  it  is  certain  that 
the  child  was  never  condemned  to  Gehenna  1  and  Abimelech 
gaid,  '  Whoso  toucheth  this  man  or  his  wife  shall  surely  he  put 
to  death''  (Gen.  xx\a.  11),  though  it  is  evident  that,  not  being 
God,  he  was  not  passing  sentence  of  spiritual  death.  The  same 
phenomenon  occurs  often ;  the  word  being  doubled  for  the  sake 
of  emphasis.  And  even,  though  I  were  to  allow  that  Adam 
suffered  spiritual  punishment  for  his  sin,  yet  what  did  the  men 
who  came  after  him  do  to  merit  Gehenna?    they  did  not  sin 

a  Above,  p.  156. 


346  K.  YIZHAQ   LOPE/.  [  Iii_,  liii. 

themselves,  and  '  the  soul  of  the  son  sliall  not  hear  the  iniquity 
of  the  father  :'  if,  again,  Adam's  soid  sinned,  hut  Ahraham's 
clave  unto  the  Lord,  and  kept  his  comniandnicnts  (as  it  is  writ- 
ten, Gen.  xxvi.  5),  how  could  the  Divine  judgment  condemn 
them  hoth  equally,  and  cause  the  '  righteous  to  he  as  the 
Avickedl'  And  although,  further,  I  were  to  allow  that  Adam's 
punishment  was  a  spiritual  one,  and  that  its  consequences 
affected  his  descendants,  still,  since  the  Almighty  is  pleased  to 
accept  atonement  for  iniquity,  is  his  infinite  hand  '  shortened 
that  it  cannot  save '  for  men  to  imagine  he  must  clothe  himself 
in  flesh  and  endure  sufferings  1  Is  it  not  contrary  to  reason 
that  justice  should  call  for  punishment  upon  him  against  whom 
others  have  sinned  rather  than  upon  the  sinner  1  And  if  you 
contend  that  it  was  right  that  some  one  single  individual  of  the 
human  race  should  receive  the  penalty  upon  himself,  and  so 
atone  for  all  mankind,  it  might  have  been  expected  that  some 
prophet  or  wise  man  should  have  been  the  victim,  rather  than 
that  God  should  slay  his  own  Son :  who  ever  heard  of  a  king, 
who,  when  his  servants  had  offended  him,  slew  his  own  son  to 
make  atonement  for  their  sin  ?  In  addition,  however,  to  all 
the  weak  points  which  have  been  here  enumerated,  the  sup- 
position that  the  Almighty  (who  is  infinite  power)  should  take 
flesh,  and  so  become  finite,  refutes  itself.  Other  objections, 
stated  by  R.  Hasdai  [Crescas],  I  do  not  wish  here  to  dwell 
upon.  But  how  can  you  reconcile  it  with  your  creed  that  Jesus 
should  be  said  to  '  carry  sickness  and  bear  pain  V  it  is  inconceiv- 
able that  God  should  ever  endure  Gehenna,  and  if  you  think  that 
the  words  may  be  applied  to  his  death  and  the  sufferings  wliich 
were  inflicted  upon  him,  then  there  is  still  a  difficulty  in  the 
term  employed,  for  death  is  never  spoken  of  as  '  sickness.'  The 
expression  smitten  of  God  is  also  difficult  to  explain ;  for  it 
would  seem  to  imply  that  God  smote  himself.  And  from  the 
plirase,  The  Lord  laid  upon  him,  etc.,  it  follows  that  he  must 
be  the  patient  and  God  the  agent :  it  is  clear,  then,  that  the 
Almighty  is  the   Master,  and  he  the  subordinate.      The  same 


Hi,  liii.]  R.  YiZHAQ  LOPEZ.  347 

conclusion  follows  from  verso  lo,  The  Lord  was  pleased,  etc.  : 
your  contention,  then,  that  he  is  God  cannot  be  a  just  one. 
7.  The  language  in  verse  8,  lie  was  taken  from  sovereignty 
(i  Sam.  ix.  17)  and  from  judgment  is  inapplicable  to  him;  for 
Jesus  (as  I  have  shewn  in  §  15)  was  never  at  any  time  invested 
with  authority  or  dominion  :  and  what  follows  is  no  less  un- 
suitable, viz.  that  he  was  cut  off  from  the  land  of  life — i.  e. 
according  to  the  most  natural  meaning,  from  the  land  of  Israel, 
which  is  so  designated — for  it  is  well  known  that  Jesus  met 
his  death  in  Jerusalem.  And  if  you  prefer  to  explain  the 
expression  of  the  glory  in  Paradise,  from  which  he  was  cut 
off  (inasmuch  as  that,  too,  is  called  the  land  of  life),  even 
this  resource  will  not  avail ;  because  you  yourselves  believe 
that  he  rose  again  the  third  day,  and  ascended  up  to  heaven, 
and  sat  down  on  the  right  hand  of  God,  where  he  liveth  for 
ever  and  ever:  if,  then,  he  is  still  in  the  'land  of  the  living,' 
he  cannot  be  said  to  have  been  cut  off  from  it.  A  difficulty 
also  arises  on  account  of  the  word  '\U?  ('  to  them '),  which 
shews  that  Isaiah  was  referring  to  more  than  one,  since 
otherwise  he  must  have  written  1?  ('to  Jiim'),  as,  in  fact,  is 
actually  done  by  some  of  those  who  would  falsely  mislead 
you.  If  you  answer  that  he  used  the  plural  number,  in  order 
to  point  to  both  the  manhood  and  the  Godhead  at  once,  then 
you  are  corrupting  your  own  faith,  in  which  it  is  a  fundamental 
article  that  Jesus  did  not  endure  suffering  and  death  in  respect 
of  his  Godhead,  but  only  in  respect  of  his  manhood,  or,  as  you 
term  it,  his  humanitas.  8.  The  ninth  verse  is  not  applicable 
to  him ;  for  your  theory  that  '  his  grave '  means  his  death,  and 
that  this  took  place  amongst  the  wicked  Israelites,  has  nothing 
to  support  it :  had  the  prophet  intended  this,  he  must  have  said 
'his  death,'  since  it  is  not  recorded  in  your  books  that  he  was 
in  any  sense  maltreated  at  the  time  of  his  burial.  Moreover, 
this  prophecy  would  then  contradict  another  prophecy  of  Isaiah's 
respecting  the  Messiah,  in  which  he  says  that  his  '  resting-place 
shall  be  glorious'  (xi.  10) — a  passage  which  you  have  corrupted. 


348  B.  YizHAQ  LOPEZ.  [Hi,  Hii. 

your  false  guides  rendering  it,  'And  his  grave  shall  be  glo- 
rious ^  : '  the  expression,  a7id  the  rich  in  his  death,  is  likewise 
unsuitable.  9.  If  Jesus  was  God,  and  consented  to  suffer  for  the 
purpose,  as  you  maintain,  of  rescuing  the  souls  of  his  creatures, 
it  could  not  be  said  that  the  Lord  was  jyleased  to  bruise  him,  as 
though  it  had  been  God's  will  to  do  this;  for  what  is  done 
without  any  assignable  cause  is  attributed  to  'pleasure,'  and  not 
what  is  done  for  some  definite  purpose.  How,  too,  will  the 
next  words  afford  a  congruous  sense  1  if  he  was  God,  then  his 
happiness  could  not  depend  upon  a  covenant  or  condition ;  how 
then  can  he  suitably  be  supposed  to  receive  a  reward  1  arc  not  all 
such  expressions  applicable  to  men  rather  than  to  God  1  And 
as  to  the  promise  that  he  should  see  seed  and  lengthen  days,  was 
it  not  his  fate  to  die  in  the  midst  of  his  days,  when  thirty-three 
years  old,  and  without  any  children  1  If  you  answer  that  his 
'seed'  means  those  who  follow  after  his  doctrine,  the  word  used  is 
inappropriate ;  for  you  will  not  find  in  the  whole  twenty- four 
books  of  the  Old  Testament  that  disciples  are  ever  called  '  seed  : ' 
they  are  only  called  '  chiklreu'  or  'sons,'  as  Deut.  xi.  19,  2  Kings 
ii.  3  al. :  in  this  case,  therefore,  he  should  have  written,  '  he  shall 
see  sons,'  for  by  '  seed '  are  denoted  those  who  proceed  literally 
out  of  a  man's  loins ;  and  how  could  it  be  said  of  God  that  he 
had  seed  in  this  sense  1  And  if  you  suppose  that  the  '  length 
of  days'  mentioned  by  the  prophet  alludes  to  the  Godhead, 
which  lives  for  ever  and  ever,  no  need  for  Isaiah  to  have  assured 
him  of  this :  we  know  well  that  the  Creator  is  the  First  and 
the  Last,  and  that  his  years  never  come  to  an  end,  and  that  he, 
moreover,  watches  and  observes  both  that  which  has  been  and 
that  which  is  to  be  :  there  is  nothing,  therefore,  either  novel 
or  appropriate  in  affix'ming  long  life  except  of  flesh  and  blood. 
Besides,  how  could  it  be  said  that  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord  should 
prosper  in  his  hand .?  Such  a  phrase  as  this  could  be  used  only 
of  what  a  man  performs  through  the  agency  of  some  one  else, 
not  of  what  he  performs  in  his  own  person  :  the  '  travail  of  his 

^  In  the  Vulgate,  '  Et  erit  scpulcrum  eius  gloriosuru.' 


lii,  liii.]  I!.  Yi/iiAQ   i.oi'E/..  349 

soul'  is  also  an  unsuitable  expression,  for  you  yourselves  hold 
that  his  Divinity  never  endured  travail  or  suffering,  but  only 
his  manhood.  lo.  The  words  in  verse  12  are  likewise  inap- 
})licable  to  him ;  for  even  though  you  interpret  /  toill  allot  Jam 
a  portion  vnth  the  many  of  the  nations  who  accepted  his  doc- 
trine and  religion,  what  will  you  make  of  the  clause  which 
follows  ?  you  will  not  find  it  stated  anywhere  that  Jesus  carried 
on  war  or  '  divided  spoil ; '  and  to  refer  the  expression  to  his 
Divinity  will  only  give  rise  to  the  unsuitable  idea  that  the 
Creator  should  support  himself  by  the  division  of  spoil  ^.  It  is 
said,  too,  that  he  interceded  for  tlte  transgressors :  but,  if  he 
was  God  himself,  with  whom  was  he  to  intercede  1  Nor,  lastly, 
can  you  reconcile  with  the  facts  what  is  here  said,  that  he 
jjoured  out  his  soid  to  die,  which  implies  that  he  met  death 
voluntarily,  and  without  any  compulsion  :  for  I  have  already 
shewn  in  this  very  section  that  he  died  against  his  will.  It  is 
clear,  now,  from  these  ten  considerations,  that  in  accordance 
with  the  right  intcrpi'etation  and  the  true  meaning  of  the  pro- 
phecy, it  is  impossible  to  explain  it,  as  you  do,  of  Jesus  your 
Messiah. 

I  will  therefore  proceed  to  put  before  you  the  correct  expla- 
nation, as  it  has  been  given  by  R.  David  Qamhi  and  Rashi  and 
other  expositors,  which  is  to  the  effect  that  it  alludes  to  Israel, 
and  specially  to  the  time  when  our  exiles  will  be  gathered  toge- 
ther :  the  proof  of  this  lies  in  what  I  have  already  stated, 
namely,  that  both  before  and  after  it  the  predictions  delivered 
by  the  prophet  relate  to  our  redemption :  he  says,  for  example, 
'Awake,  awake,  put  on  thy  strength,  0  Zion,'  etc.  (li.  9,  17), 
'How  beautiful  are  the  feet,'  etc.  (Hi.  7),  'The  Lord  hath  re- 
deemed Jerusalem,'  etc.  (vei's.  9-1 1),  and  then  immediately 
breaks  off  into  Behold  my  servant,  etc.  When  the  Parashah  is 
ended,  he  again  resumes  the  same  strain,  exclaiming,  '  Shout,  0 
barren  one,'  etc.  (liv.  i),  the  sequel  of  which  relates  entirely  to 
the  period  of  our  redemption.     It  will  thus  be  clear  to  any  one 

"  Cf.  above,  p.  1 24  top. 


350  U.  YIZHAQ   LOPEZ.  [Hi.  13- 

of  intelligence  that  the  Parashah  before  us  must  refer  to  the 
same  occasion  :  it  narrates,  in  fact,  the  comments  made  by  the 
Gentiles  on  the  nation  in  general,  and  on  the  righteous  in  par- 
ticular, whose  reproach  and  disgrace  they  had  witnessed  before, 
but  whose  exaltation  they  will  then  behold. 

LII.  "  Accordingly  the  prophet  begins,  Behold  my  servant, 
i.  e.  Israel,  who  are  so  termed  by  him  countless  times  besides, 
as  xliv,  2,  etc.,  shall  prosper,  emerging  from  the  depression  in 
•which  he  had  previously  been.  ^*  As  many  were  astonished  at 
thee,  when  they  saw  thy  depression,  when  your  countenance  and 
form  was  changed  in  consequence  of  the  subjection  in  which 
you  were  held,  so  will  he  scatter  many  nations,  i.  e.  rule  over 
them  with  great  power,  his  exaltation  being  such  that  kings 
will  open  their  mouths  at  him  in  amazement  when  they  behold 
his  gi-eatness,  forthwith  exclaiming  (LIII.  ^)  Who  believed  our 
report  that  this  despised  people  would  ever  i-ise  to  such  great- 
ness 1  ^  He  was  desjnsed,  etc.,  viz.  in  consequence  of  the  mise- 
ries which  you  ignominiously  inflicted  upon  us  :  so  great  was 
the  contempt  in  which  we  were  held  by  you,  that  any  one  who 
wished  to  reproach  or  insult  another  called  him  a  Jew  :  besides 
this,  you  also  expel  us  fi-om  your  lands.  Many  of  you,  too, 
hide  your  faces  so  as  not  to  look  at  the  countenance  of  a  Jew  : 
to  do  this  is  considered  by  you  to  be  '  an  iniquity  for  the  judge.' 
And  do  not  raise  an  objection  at  the  expression,  a  man  of  pains, 
as  though  it  referred  only  to  an  individual ;  because  our  nation 
is  repeatedly  spoken  of  as  a  man — for  instance,  i  Sam.  xvii.  2, 
Judg.  xxi.  I,  and  often  besides  d;  the  prophet  adds,  lastly,  that 
he  was  so  despised  that  we  esteemed  him  not.  *  You  however 
will  say,  'He  carried  our  sicknesses  and  hare  our  pains:  pre- 
viously, indeed,  we  imagined  that  sufferings  had  been  sent  upon 
Israel,  as  a  punishment  by  the  Ahnighty,  and  therefore  thought 
him  stricken,  smitten  of  God,  and  ajflicted :  this  was  not  so, 
however ;  they  were  endured  by  him  on  our  account.'     Or  we 

<'  See  p.  17,:;. 


-liii.  9.]  R.  YizHAq  LOPEZ.  351 

may  take  another  line,  and  suppose  that  these  arc  the  words  of 
Israel  spoken  by  them  with  reference  to  the  righteous — whose 
case  they  thoroughly  suit :  tliey  will  then  express  Israel's  con- 
fession that  the  sufferings  which  they  ought  for  our  iniquities 
to  have  endured  were  borne  by  the  righteous  for  their  sake. 
^  Accordingly,  Isaiah  continues,  He  ivas  wounded  for  our  trans- 
gressions, etc.,  and  by  his  stripes  we  are  healed,  i.  e.  by  the  stripes 
of  the  righteous  we  are  forgiven.  *  Then  the  transgressors  in 
Israel  will  say.  All  we  like  sheep  went  astray,  we  followed  the 
stubbornness  of  our  heart ;  hut  the  Lord  laid  upon  tliem,  the 
righteous,  tlie  iniquity  of  us  all.  "^  These  righteous,  dwelling  in 
the  midfct  of  the  Gentiles,  were  oppressed  and  afflicted:  their 
enemies  mui'dered  and  persecuted  them,  and,  but  for  the  mercy 
of  God,  would  have  exterminated  them  altogether :  ^  all  day  long 
they  opj^ressed  them  with  cruel  judgments  ;  and  who  can  tell  all 
the  vexations  and  sufferings  endured  by  each  successive  genera- 
tion in  exile  for  the  holiness  of  God's  name  1  for  he  was  cut  off 
out  of  the  land  of  life, — alluding  to  the  numbers  of  the  righteous 
who  were  persecuted  to  death  in  the  midst  of  their  days ;  for 
the  transgression  of  my  j)eople  was  the  stroke  upon  them,  i.  e.  the 
plagues  which  ouglit  to  have  fallen  on  Israel  for  their  trans- 
gressions came  upon  the  rigliteous  instead :  accordingly,  the 
prophet  says  ID7,  which  is  plural.  ^  He  made  his  grave  ivith  the 
vjicked, — referring  to  the  righteous  who  were  slain  like  guilty 
persons  condemned  to  death  by  the  sentence  of  a  court,  and  after- 
wards flung  out  unburied  for  the  dogs ;  although  he  uses  the 
word  '  grave,'  which  might  seem  to  imply  that  they  were  actu- 
ally bui'ied,  j&i  we  may  suppose  that  their  burial  was  like  that 
of  Jehoiakim,  king  of  Judah,  who  was  '  buried '  by  being  '  drawn 
along  and  cast  outside  the  walls  of  Jerusalem '  (Jer.  xxii.  1 9) : 
thus  the  meaning  will  be,  that  as  the  wicked  who  are  sentenced 
to  execution  are  only  buried  on  dunghills,  the  treatment  re- 
ceived by  Israel  at  the  hands  of  the  Gentiles  was  similar.  And 
ivith  tlie  rich  i^i  his  death ;  i.  e.  as  the  rich  and  wicked  man 
who  perishes  without  having  done  any  good  or  righteous  act  in 


352.  R.  YIZHAQ    LOPEZ.  [liii.  10- 

his  life  is  cursed  at  the  liour  of  his  deatli  by  all  who  know  him, 
such  is  also  the  fate  of  the  Israelites  after  they  have  been  mur- 
dered ;  or  perhaps  the  meaning  may  Ijc,  that  the  wicked  Gen- 
tiles maltreat  us  not  merely  during  our  lifetime,  but  even  after 
our  death ;  for  when  we  have  buried  our  dead,  they  go  '  in  the 
pupil  of  the  night  and  darkness '  to  their  sepulchres  and  pro- 
ceed to  exhume  the  bodies  in  order  to  insult  them  and  plunder 
their  grave-clothes :  especially  if  the  dead  person  were  suffi- 
ciently wealthy  for  them  to  imagine  that  his  'glory'  and  riches 
might  'descend  after  him'  into  his  tomb.  All  this  they  did, 
although  he  had  done  no  violence  and  there  tvas  no  deceit  in  his 
mouth.  '"  All  the  sicknesses  and  afflictions  mentioned  as  falling 
upon  the  righteous  only  befel  them  by  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord, 
for  the  purpose  of  cleansing  them  from  the  iniquity  they  had 
committed,  and  of  making  atonement  for  the  transgressors  in 
Israel ;  for  '  the  righteous  maketh  atonement  for  his  generation,' 
as  we  learn  from  the  case  of  Josiah,  king  of  Judah,  who,  though 
perfectly  upright  himself,  nevertheless  was  punished  in  the  ini- 
quity of  his  age.  In  the  same  way,  king  Solomon  says,  'Whom 
the  Lord  loveth  he  chasteneth.'  If,  however,  his  soul  makes 
a  trespass-offering — i.  e.  if  he  accepts  his  sufferings  of  love,  as 
though  thei'e  had  been  some  trespass  in  his  soul,  he  will  be 
worthy  for  his  reward  to  see  seed  and  prolong  his  days,  etc. 
■"  For  tJie  travail  of  his  soul,  he  will  see  and  be  satisfied,  i.  e.  as 
a  compensation  for  his  travail,  and  because  he  bare  their  ini- 
quities, all  that  has  been  mentioned  will  be  granted  to  him. 
"  Therefore,  because  of  all  this,  /  will  give  him  a  goodly  portion 
of  the  spoil  of  many,  and  unth  the  mighty  he  shall  divide  the 
spoil  of  all  the  nations  who  will  advance  against  Jerusalem  (as 
it  is  said,  in  the  description  of  the  battle  with  Gog  and  Magog, 
Ezek  xxxix.  lo,  'They  shall  spoil  those  that  spoiled  them,  and 
rob  those  that  robbed  them,  saith  the  Lord'),  because  he  poured 
out  his  soul  to  die,  viz.  by  undergoing  martyrdom  for  the  holi- 
ness of  God,  as  our  own  eyes  see  is  done  now  by  those  of 
our  nation   in  Spain   and   Portugal,  where  numbers  are  being 


-liii.  12.]  R.  YIZHAQ    LOPEZ.  353 

burnt  alive  for  the  sake  of  the  truth.  And  tvas  numbered  with 
the  transgressors,  for  sufferings  and  death  were  endured  by  these 
righteous  as  though  they  had  been  wicked  and  corrupt :  in  their 
death,  therefore,  they  atoned  for  the  sins  of  many,  and  in  their 
lives  sought  for  mercy  on  the  transgressors,  notwithstanding  the 
oppression  which  they  had  endured  at  their  hands. 

You  have  now  a  clear  proof  that  the  whole  Parashah  relates 
to  the  future  rewards  and  happiness  which  the  Almighty  will 
in  due  time  bestow  upon  Israel  in  return  for  the  misery  and 
indignities  which  they  underwent  amongst  the  heathen  in  this 
present  world :  their  exaltation  and  might  will  then  be  such 
that  all  people  will  be  astonished  (as  it  is  wi-itteu,  Dan,  xii.  3, 
'  They  that  understand  shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of  the  fir- 
mament '),  and  the  transgressors  in  Israel  will  perceive  that  all 
the  sufferings  of  the  righteous  were  on  their  behalf,  that  through 
their  death  their  own  sins  might  be  forgiven,  and  that  by  their 
merits  the  Redeemer  might  at  length  come  and  deliver  us  from 
this  long  captivity.  With  respect  to  the  Haggadah  (mentioned 
by  you  at  the  beginning),  *  He  shall  be  higher  than  Abraham, 
more  exalted  than  Moses,  and  loftier  than  the  ministering 
angels,'  and  the  assertion  that  such  exalted  dignities  could  not 
be  predicated  of  any  one  except  of  Jesus,  who  was  both  man 
and  God,  I  have  deferred  replying  to  it  until  now,  because, 
firstly,  I  have  considered  it  important  to  answer  you  by  appeal- 
ing to  the  literal  rather  than  to  the  allegorical  interpretation 
of  the  text ;  and,  secondly,  because  our  Eabbis  have  laid  down 
the  principle  not  to  reply  to  an  Haggadah,  and  because  I  intend 
to  treat  all  Haggadahs  at  full  length  in  another  place,  '  where- 
unto  thou  niayest  seek,  and  whither  thou  mayest  come.'  Never- 
theless I  will  mention  the  explanation  given  of  this  Haggadah 
by  one  of  our  Eabbis,  viz.  R,  ]\tosheh  of  Coucy,  which  is  to  the 
effect  that  the  upright  and  perfect  man  is  superior  to  the  angels, 
because  the  angels  are  perfect  through  being  devoid  of  an  evil 
imagination,  so  that  a  being  like  man,  who  has  the  evil  imagi- 
nation, but  maintains  his  integrity  in  spite  of  it,  is  morally 

A  a 


354  H.  YIZHAQ    LOPEZ,  [liii.  12. 

their  superior.  And  do  not  wonder  how  the  perfection  of  a  man 
can  resemble  that  of  an  angel,  for  in  Joshua  it  is  said  (v.  14), 
'  I  am  the  captain  of  the  Lord's  host ;  now  am  I  come,'  which 
our  Rabbis  explain  thus,  '  Now  I  am  come :  but  Moses  thy 
master  had  no  pleasure  in  me,  as  it  is  written.  If  thy  presence 
doth  not  go,  take  us  not  up  hence,'  which  they  further  explain 
by  saying  that  Moses  himself  took  the  place  of  the  Metatron  : 
since,  then,  the  Messiah  is  more  exalted  than  Moses,  it  is  evi- 
dent that  he  is  also  loftier  than  the  angels  ^. — Such,  then,  is  the 
exposition  which  I  have  wished  to  give,  in  order  to  remove  the 
hardness  of  thy  heart. 

®  Above,  p.  152. 


XLVI.     R.  Y'HOSHU'A   SEGRE. 

You  must  know  that  the  Nazarenes  have  yet  another  proof, 
which  they  imagine  to  be  '  strong  as  a  molten  mirror,'  and  one 
which  'no  craftsman  or  son  of  a  ci'aftsman  can  bi'eak  up/ 
derived  from  the  fifty-second  and  fifty-third  chapters  of  Isaiah, 
two  chapters  upon  which  their  learned  men  build  their  principal 
arguments,  alleging  that  Jesus  was  the  Messiah,  and  that  he 
pez'ished  in  the  midst  of  many  sicknesses  in  order  to  make 
atonement  for  guilt.  Their  interpretation  is  as  follows  : — '  ^^My 
servant,  i.  e.  Jesus,  who  was  God's  servant,  sliall  assuredly  'pros- 
per in  his  divine  essence ;  he  shall  be  hvjli  and  lifted  up,  and 
loft)/  exceedinghj  —  the  prophet  distinguishing  him  by  three 
terms,  expressive  of  the  highest  exaltation,  and  corresponding 
to  the  threefold  nature  implanted  in  him,  the  Father,  the  Son, 
and  the  Spirit.  "  As  in  the  days  of  thy  life,  when  they  knew 
not  thy  nature,  many  were  astonished  at  thee,  asking,  as  in  fact 
they  did  ask,  How  can  any  son  of  man  do  such  signs  as  this 
man  dothl — so  hright^  tvas  his  countenance  beyond  man,  and  his 
form  beyond  the  sons  of  men,  for  he  had  a  fair  face  and  comely 
eyes,  and  possessed  a  glass  of  such  transcendent  brightness'', 
that  his  like  could  not  be  found  amongst  all  mankind — ^^  so 
will  he  sprinkle,  viz.  with  his  own  holy  waters,  the  waters  of 

«■  Above,  pp.  6i,  67. 

^  A  play,  apparently,  on  the  two  meanings  of  the  allied  words  rt^nn  and 
nxTD.  Compare  Wayijiqra  Rahhd,  §  i,  where  it  is  said,  with  reference  to 
Num.  xii.  8,  m'na  N71  rtN"\'3i,  that  while  all  the  other  prophets  saw  through 
a  soiled  and  darkened  glass,  Moses  saw  through  one  that  was  pellucidly  clear. 
Compare  also  2  Cor.  iii.  18. 

A  a  2 


356  R.  yhosih-'a  segre.  [lii,  liii. 

baptism,  many  nations — for  these  waters  he  hath  appointed  for 
every  one  that  cometli  into  the  world :  at  1dm  kings  will  shut 
their  mouth  ;  they  will  run  towards  him  to  hear  his  wisdom  and 
knowledge,  as  it  is  said,  Venerunt  magi  ah  Oriente  (Matt.  ii.  i), 
in  allusion  to  the  kings  who,  following  his  star,  came  from  the  East 
to  behold  his  majesty  and  glory.  And  tJuit  which  had  not  been  told 
them,  etc.  :  because  they  came  to  offer  him  worship  and  honour 
on  account  of  the  good  fame  which  he  had  in  all  the  earth. 

*LIII.  *  The  prophet,  knowing  that  the  Jews  would  not  believe 
in  Jesus,  but  would  j)ut  him  to  death,  now  substantiates  what 
he  had  said,  asking,  WJio  believed  our  report,  the  report  which 
we  gave,  namely,  that  Jesus  would  come  ?  "^  He  came  up  as 
a  sucker,  which,  when  young  and  small,  men  do  not  regard  at 
all :  he  will  have  at  first  no  form  or  comeliness  ;  and  we  shall 
see  him,  hut  he  will  not  shew  c  (others),  i.  e.  he  will  be  a  learner 
from  other  men,  and  not  a  teacher :  being  endued  with  a  body 
and  the  capacities  of  a  body,  he  will  be  forced  to  observe  the 
ways  of  the  body,  and  to  be  a  recipient  rather  than  a  conferrer ; 
and  we  shall  desire  him,  for  the  Almighty  hath  desire  towards 
his  only  son.  ^  While  among  men,  he  will  be  despised  and  fm'- 
lorn  of  men;  for  the  Jews  will  deny  his  Divinity,  declaring 
that  he  is  a  sorcerer  and  a  deceiver  of  Israel,  and  therefore 
they  will  stone  him  and  hang  him  on  the  cross :  a  man  of 
pains,  etc.,  for  the  Almighty  will  give  him  over  into  our  hands 
and  authorize  us  to  put  him  to  death,  and  be  as  though  his  face 
were  hidden  from  him  :  he  will  be  despised,  and  we  shall  not 
esteem  him.  *  But  the  prophet  bids  them  know  that  if  the 
Almighty  has  thus  hidden  his  face  from  him  and  abandoned  him 
into  their  power,  it  is  because  he  has  carried  our  sicknesses  and 
borne  our  pains,  i.  e.  all  the  sicknesses  and  pains  which  ought 
to  have  fallen  upon  us  for  our  sins :  we  however  thought  him 
stricken,  and  smitten  of  God  for  his  own  wickedness,  though  in 
truth  it  was  not  so,  and  he  was  stricken  and  afflicted  for  our 

"=  Taking  riNin  as  a  partic.  Hif'il. 


lii,  liii.]  R.  y'hoshu'a  segbe.  357 

transgressions.  ^  The  whole  is  here  summed  up  in  the  words, 
Wounded  for  our  transgressions,  etc.,  which  state  how  all  his 
sufferings  were  on  account  of  our  sins,  for  the  purpose  of  making 
atonement  for  them  and  removing  them  from  off  us  :  our  peace  is 
removed  utterly  because  of  him,  for  through  the  stripes  which  he 
received  when  his  hands  and  feet  were  pierced  upon  the  cross, 
the  sin  which  rested  upon  us  was  healed,  and  the  guilt  contracted 
by  Adam's  sin  wiped  out,  so  that  the  gates  of  Paradise,  which 
had  been  closed  then,  were  opened  by  the  death  of  Jesus.  ®  Of 
the  Jews  who  were  thus  to  treat  him,  Isaiah,  seeing  that  they 
would  rise  up  against  him  and  crucify  him,  "  through  one  that 
was  wicked  producing  Avickedness  d "  says,  All  ive  like  sheep 
tvent  astray,  we  each,  after  slaying  him  upon  the  hill,  turned  to 
our  oivit  way :  yet  the  Lord  laid  upon  him  the  iniqidty  of  us 
all,  for  immediately  after  his  death,  the  second  Temple  was  laid 
waste,  and  Israel  wandered  in  exile  from  their  laud  "  into  the 
land  of  the  children  of  Esau,  who  dwell  in  Seir."  '^  The  prophet 
adds :  If  ye  are  willing  to  acknowledge  that  Jesus,  the  Son, 
died  by  his  own  will  and  pleasure  to  atone  for  guilt,  know  also 
that  in  the  hour  of  his  death,  he  never  lifted  up  his  voice  to 
cry,  because  he  heard  not,  neither  felt  the  sufferings  which  the 
Jews  inflicted  on  him.  *  And  what  did  his  death  achieve  for 
the  world  1  by  being  cinicified  he  ivas  taken  out  of  the  world  in 
order  to  appoint  and  preside  over  (l^J?)  the  second  judgment  in 
the  presence  of  all  that  ever  came  into  the  world  ;  and  his  genera- 
tion, the  inestimable  benefits  which  he  conferred  in  particular 
upon  those  of  his  own  generation,  who  can  declare  ?  If  he  had 
not  delivered  himself  up  to  die,  the  whole  of  that  generation,  as 
also  all  other  generations,  would  have  been  cut  off  from,  tJve  land 
of  life,  for  until  then  the  gates  of  Paradise  had  been  closed; 
inasmuch  as  for  the  transgression  of  my  people  a  stroke  was 
upon  them — they  were  unable  to  enter  therein,  because  sin  pre- 
vented them.    ^  Nevertheless,  he  made  his  grave  with  the  ivicked; 

d  Cf.  Thalm.  Bab.,  Shahbath,  32«. 


358  n.  y'hoshu'a  segre.  [Hi,  liii. 

^"  and  the  Lord,  i.  e.  the  Father,  tuas  pleased  to  bruise  him  with 
that  sore  sickness  in  order  that  in  the  future  the  Lord's  pleasure 
might  j^rosper  by  his  hand,  i.  e.  that  men,  by  being  obedient 
to  his  new  law,  miglit  secure  Paradise  for  themselves,  and  that 
^^  for  the  travail  of  his  soul,  the  travail  which  each  would  un- 
dergo in  the  service  of  Jesus,  he  should  see  and  be  satisfied.  By 
his  knoioledge — by  that  creed  which  in  their  language  is  styled  a 
"confession" — he  \\\\\  justify  the  just,  and  ever  aftei'wards  bear 
all  their  iniquity  if  they  bielieve  in  him  and  keep  his  command- 
ments. ^^  The  Father  here  promises  of  the  Son  :  Therefore  J 
will  allot  unto  him,  and  to  his  law,  glory  among  the  many,  and 
with  mighty  nations  he  shall  divide  the  spoil  of  his  law,  because 
he  poured  out  his  soul  to  die,  and  was  numbered  with  the  trans- 
gressors, being  put  to  death  between  two  thieves,  who  are  called 
"  ladroni,"  and  carried  the  sin  of  many,  and  made  atonement 
for  it,  and  interceded  for  transgressors,  always  praying  for  them 
whenever  they  are  willing  to  believe  in  him.' 

The  following  are  the  doubts  which  tell  with  fatal  effect 
against  this  most  mendacious  explanation,  and  force  upon  us 
the  true  one  in  its  jilace  : 

I.  How  could  the  Almighty  have  called  his  only  Son  a 
'servant' — a  title  appertaining  to  one  who  is  passive,  and  in 
unconditional  subjection  to  an  active  principle  Avithout  1  if  the 
Nazarenes  are  right,  he  should  rather  have  used  the  more  digni- 
fied expression,  and  said, '  Behold,  my  Son  shall  prosper.'  2.  The 
prophet  says  here,  '  He  will  be  high  and  exalted,  and  lofty  ex- 
ceedingly,' and  below  describes  the  subject  of  his  prophecy  as 
'  despised,  and  forlorn  of  men  : '  but  how  can  attributes  which 
mutually  contradict  one  another,  co-exist  in  a  single  individual  1 
3.  He  says  that  men  were  amazed  at  Jesus,  because  he  had  a 
form  unlike  the  other  children  of  men :  but  in  what  respect 
was  it  different?  since  if  he  means  to  allude  to  any  halo  of 
glory  encircling  him,  this  is  untrue,  for  we  do  not  find  that 
]>eoi)le  ever  fled  from  him  or  were  awed  by  his  presence  (as  they 
fled  from  Moses),  Imt  that  they  seized  him  and  put  him  to  doatli. 


lii,  liii.]  R.  Y"'HOsriu'A  segbe.  359 

And,  moreover,  not  one  of  their  writers  has  spoken  of  Jesus  as 
being  marked  by  such  a  halo.  4.  They  explain  the  words,  '  So 
shall  he  sprinkle,'  etc.,  of  the  holy  water  which  he  commanded 
to  be  poured  upon  the  head  of  every  man  :  but  water  was  never 
thus  poured  upon  his  own  head,  nor  did  he  ever  with  his  own 
hands  pour  water  upon  the  head  of  any  one  else ;  and  the  asser- 
tion that  John  the  Baptist  poured  water  upon  him  is  altogether 
false,  for  that  was  not  a  case  of  pouring  but  only  of  immersion ; 
nor  did  Jesus  himself  ever  enjoin  the  pouring  of  water,  which 
is  a  rite  invented  as  time  went  on,  like  the  rest  of  their  prac- 
tices, out  of  their  own  hearts.  5.  How  can  it  be  said,  firstly,  that 
kings  were  to  'shut  their  mouth  at  him'  (which  they  explain 
as  relating  to  the  three  wise  kings  who  were  to  come  and  wor- 
ship him  and  hear  his  wisdom),  and  afterwards  that  he  would 
be  'despised  and  forloi'n  of  men?'  6.  If,  as  must  be  admitted, 
he  died  'for  his  own  sin'  (2  Kings  xiv.  6),  how  could  it  be  said 
of  him  that  he  was  '  stricken,  and  smitten  of  God  V  7.  As  re- 
gards the  explanation  of  the  woi'ds,  *  Wounded  for  our  trans- 
gressions,' we  may  indeed  remember  what  the  Thalmud  says,  '  In 
Babylon  they  have  the  proverb,  "  'Tobiah  sinned,  and  Zagod  was 
beaten ;"  and  in  Palestine,  "Shechem  had  the  pleasure,  and  Mab- 
nai  e  was  cut  off : " '  but  can  it  be  right  that  when  other  men 
have  sinned,  Jesus  should  then  die  for  them  1  Is  it  in  accord- 
ance with  justice  for  the  righteous  to  die  for  the  purpose  of 
rescuing  the  wicked?  8.  What  is  the  meaning  of  'All  we  like 
sheep,'  etc.  1  if  it  was  the  King's  decree  that  Jesus  should  die 
in  order  to  atone  for  sin  and  guilt,  and  if  the  Jews  only  executed 
his  pleasure  in  putting  him  to  death  (for  he  must  then  have 
come  into  the  world  in  oi'der  to  suffer  death  upon  the  cross), 
how  can  it  be  said  that  they  '  went  asti'ay '  in  so  doing  %  did  they 
not  rather  do  what  was  right  and  fitting,  if  such  was  his  plea- 
sure ?     And  the  pleasure  of  any  one  is  also  his  glory.     9.  How 

*  Thalmud  of  Babylon,  Mahhoth,  w"^.     '  Mabnai '  is  explained  to  signify 
the  inliabitants  of  Shechem. 


360  R.  y'hoshu'a  segre.  [Hi,  liii. 

can  the  words,  '  He  opened  not  his  mouth,'  be  applied  to  Jesus  ? 
does  not  Luke  certify  in  his  Gospel  that  at  the  moment  of  his 
death  he  cried  with  a  loud  voice,  saying,  'My  God,  my  God, 
why  hast  thou  forsaken  me?'  And  did  he  not  also  cry  out  to 
God?  if  so,  however,  he  was  not  himself  God,  for,  as  I  shall 
explain  in  its  place,  men  only  cry  out  to  one  who  is  moi'e  power- 
ful than  themselves.  lo.  How  do  the  expressions,  'He  shall  see 
seed,  shall  have  long  days,'  apply  to  Jesus,  seeing  he  died  un- 
married and  childless  when  only  thirty -three  years  old?  In 
face  of  these  objections  all  the  arguments  and  interpretations 
of  the  Christians  have  come  utterly  to  an  end ;  for  any  expla- 
nation that  labours  under  many  grave  doubts  is  a  mere  vapour 
and  can  have  nothing  in  it. 

It  is  indeed  true  that  our  forefathers  have  offered  many  ex- 
planations, new  and  old  together,  for  this  prophecy.  Yonathan 
ben  'Uzziel  indicates  his  own  opinion  respecting  it,  an  opinion 
derived  from  tradition,  in  his  Targum.  Enough  also,  and  more 
than  enough,  has  been  ^vritten  about  it  by  Iliishi,  by  R.  David, 
by  R.  Levi  ben  Gershon,  by  the  great  Don  Yizhaq  Abarbanel, 
by  R.  Mosheh  el-Sheikh,  and  by  E,.  Sh'muel  Lanyado  (in  the 
excellent  treatise,  the  Kh'li  pdz).  All  these,  however,  and  in 
particular  the  illustrious  Ya'qob  ben  Hayim  of  Tunis  (who 
printed  the  entire  Bible),  ended  the  fifty-second  chapter  with  the 
words  what  they  had  not  Jieard  have  they  'perceived,  beginning 
the  fifty-third  with  the  exclamation.  Who  believed  our  report  ? 
for  although  this  view  was  not  the  one  entertained  by  Yonathan, 
his  opinion  has  been  disregarded  by  the  side  of  the  doctors 
of  the  Masora  :  retain,  then,  their  arrangement  and  explana- 
tion, which  you  will  find  in  their  several  treatises.  In  my 
humble  opinion,  it  would  seem  that  a  correct  exposition  of  the 
prophecy  must  presei-ve  the  division,  and  that  the  reader  should 
know  that  at  the  beginning  of  chajiter  1.  the  prophet  was 
speaking  of  the  Deliverance,  and  that  he  continues  to  treat  of 
the  same  subject  till  the  beginning  of  chapter  liii,  as  we  shall 
explain  fully  in  the  verses  as  they  come,  by  the  help  of  God. 


lii.  13-15.]  R.  y'hoshu'a  segre.  361 

LII.  "  After  haviug  detailed  at  length,  in  chapters  l-lii,the  great 
and  marvellous  events  to  happen  in  our  midst,  bringing  us  glory 
-and  renown,  at  the  time  of  the  true  Messiah,  the  prophet  says,  in 
conclusion,  Behold  my  servant,  to  whom  I  shall  give  the  domi- 
nion, and  whom  I  shall  set  over  you  as  king  in  person,  tvill 
2)rosi)eri^^'2'^'^,  as  i  Sam.  xviii.  14);  the  laud,  in  the  days  when  the 
Messiah  shall  arrive,  shall  have  rest  from  war,  and  Messiah  him- 
self shall  be  exalted  before  tlie  eyes  of  the  heathen,  being  per- 
fect in  every  part  of  his  mental  nature,  Mgli  in  all  relating  to 
the  soul,  exalted  in  spirit,  and  lofty  exceedingly  in  the  breath 
(of  life) :  he  shall  also  be  king  over  the  whole  earth,  though  at 
the  same  time  my  '  servant,'  for  his  power  and  regal  greatness 
will  devolve  upon  him  from  me,  and  be  in  no  way  dependent 
upon  his  own  ability  or  pleasure ;  for  every  being  that  possesses 
a  body,  or  is  created,  is  under  the  dominion  of  the  Almighty, 
nor  can  anything  be  found  in  all  the  worlds  which  is  not  subject 
to  him.  "  The  pi'ophet,  addressing  Israel,  now  says,  As  many, 
formerly,  were  astonished  at  thee,  exclaiming,  '  See,  this  is  new ; 
this  people  hath  never  been  thus  exalted  in  the  ages  which  are 
past,'  even  those  who  had  known  thee  in  Egypt  as  a  '  slave  for 
ever '  marvelling  when  they  saw  thee  rise  to  greatness ;  so  de- 
structive ivill  his  countenance  he  for  men — the  brightness  and 
beauty  of  liis  features  will  destroy  all  spiritual  life  from  amongst 
men,  and  his  form  cause  breath  to  cease  from  the  sons  of  men  ; 
for  they  will  be  left  in  wonder  and  astonishment,  gnashing  their 
teeth.  nnti^O  is  a  noun  formed  from  riTm^n  by  the  addition  of 
»,  like  pB>0  from  pB',  and  refers  to  those  who  see  the  Messiah, 
and  who  will  be  awe-struck  at  his  presence  and  be  left  appalled. 
^'''  The  prophet  now  narrates  what  the  Messiah  will  do  when  he 
is  come :  he  will  scatter  the  nations  and  remove  them  from  his 
presence,  however  numerous  they  may  be,  in  return  for  their 
haviug  made  Israel's  yoke  heavj'^,  while  he  was  amongst  them 
in  exile,  and  for  having  treated  him  unbefittingly, — nr  is  thus 
for  mr,  the  1  being  omitted  for  euphony.  Kings,  he  adds,  will 
close  their  moutlis  at  Mm — the  rulers  of  the  Gentiles  will  answer 


362  R.  y'hoshu'a  segre.  [liii.  i- 

no  more,  nor  even  know  how  to  commence  recounting  his  praises 
when  they  behold  his  wisdom  and  greatness;  the  end  of  the 
verse  assigns  the  reason  why  their  mouths  are  to  be  shut,  be- 
cause, namely,  they  have  seen  xvliat  had  never  been  told  tJiem, 
and  observed  with  their  own  eyes  what  they  had  never  heard 
from  the  lips  of  their  teachers  or  acquaintance. — Here  ends  the 
account  of  the  Messiah,  which  had  formed  the  subject  of  the 
prophet's  discourse  from  the  beginning  of  chapter  1. 

LIII.  ^  The  prophet  now  proceeds  to  depict  the  surprise  which 
will  be  expressed  by  the  nations  in  the  future  when  they  see 
the  people  of  Israel  elevated  to  greatness  and  honour  such  as 
they  had  never  attained  through  the  Avhole  course  of  their  pre- 
vious history,  representing  them  as  exclaiming,  Who  believed 
our  report  ?  i.  e.  who  is  the  man  that  believed  the  report  which 
we  spread  concerning  them,  saying  that  their  hope  had  perished, 
that  the  Lord  had  cast  them  off,  and  delivered  them  into  the 
hand  of  fate  1  and  upon  vjhotn  was  the  arm,  i.  e.  the  prophecy, 
of  the  Lord  revealed  at  the  time  when  we  thought  that  the 
future  would  bring  misfortune  to  them  %  ^  Our  anticipation  we 
now  see  reversed.  We  imagined  that  Israel  would  never  again 
rise  from  the  gi'ound ;  but  now  we  perceive  that  they  have 
sprung  up  like  a  sucker  or  like  a  root,  out  of  the  dry  earth  in 
which  they  were  buried  and  lost.  pJVD,  Israel  sprang  up  in  all  his 
greatness  like  one  of  those  shoots  upon  a  tree  which  are  called 
'  suckers ; '  and  Vis?  refers  back  to  the  sucker  at  the  beginning 
of  its  growth  [be/ore  itself,  i.  e.  before  it  has  an-ived  at  its  full 
size].  And  like  a  root  out  of  the  dry  earth,  which  at  first  has 
no  form  and  no  comeliness,  and,  when  we  look  upon  it,  disjilays 
no  beauty  to  our  gaze,  but  which,  afterwards,  mounts  high 
above  our  heads,  so  that  all  who  see  it  at  once  feel  desire  for  it : 
such  was  Israel ;  but  now  he  has  risen  to  his  full  height,  pro- 
ducing in  our  hearts  an  ever-growing  desire  to  unite  ourselves 
as  closely  as  possible  to  him.  "*  At  this  point  the  pi'ophet  makes 
it  his  aim  to  describe  the  wonder  which  the  Gentiles  will  ex- 
press in  the  future  on  the  greatness  of  Israel,  saying,  What  a 


-liii.  6.]  R.  y'hoshu'a  segre.  363 

people  is  this  which  was  despised  and  forlorn  of  men — for  all  the 
days  of  our  life  we  avoided  holding  converse  with  him,  and  none 
of  our  men  were  '  with  them  in  the  house ' — and  who  was  per- 
petually a  man  of  pains — for  one  day  we  used  to  attack  them 
with  one  form  of  craft  or  fraud,  and  another  day  with  another — 
and  hiotun  hy  sickness!  and  because  he  was  thus  known  to  us 
as  ravaged  by  the  sickness  of  penury,  we  therefore  hid  our  faces 
from  liim,  and  because  he  was  a  people  despised,  ive  esteemed 
liim  not,  and  he  was  in  our  eyes  'as  a  bx'oken  sherd  1'  *  Tet 
all  the  sicknesses  and  all  the  pains  which  we  laid  upon  him  he 
bare,  although  we  made  their  Aveight  so  heavy  on  him  with  a 
yoke  of  iron  upon  his  neck,  that  throughout  his  life  he  was 
never  able  to  lift  up  his  head,  being  stricken,  smitten  of  God, 
and  afflicted,  and  because  his  hope  had  perished.  ^  But  we 
have  discovered  that  Jie  ivas  2)anyed  (??"int3,  FdUl  from  PTI, 
Ps.  xlviii.  7,  as  Qamhi  says  in  his  commentary),  and  bare  all 
these  throes  and  pains  for  our  transgressions,  i.  e.  in  order  to 
increase  our  transgressions  and  be  a  cause  of  sin  to  us;  and 
bruised  for  our  iniquities,  i.  e.  similarly,  whenever  he  was  left 
bruised,  it  added  to  our  iniquities  and  only  served  to  '  increase 
transgression  to  our  sins/  This  being  the  sense,  then,  "IDID  must 
be,  not  a  substantive,  but  a  verb,  and  the  clause  will  mean,  Oii^r 
peace  was  removed,  from  us  because  of  him — because,  viz.  of  the 
evil  treatment  which  we  inflicted  on  him.  And  from  his  stripes 
he  ivas  healed  by  t(s,  i.  e.  we  were  the  cause  of  his  being  healed 
from  them ;  h  signifying  because  of  The  connexion  is  this : 
We  had  been  the  cause  of  his  many  and  sore  sicknesses,  and 
now  he  was  healed  from  the  stripes  which  came  upon  him  by 
reason  of  our  sins,  because  of  us — for  we  are  humbled,  and 
«lespised,  and  bruised,  and  aflflicted,  and  in  subjection  to  him. 
*  Perceiving  thus  that,  after  having  been  long  contemned  and 
despised  in  their  midst,  Israel  had  at  last  risen  to  the  highest 
consummation  of  honour  and  ghny,  and  that  all  the  penalties 
imposed  by  them  upon  him  had  been  in  opposition  to  justice, 
and  that  the  misfortunes  which  they  themselves  were  experi- 


364  R.  y'hosiiu'a  segre.  [liii.  7- 

encing  in  the  days  of  tbe  Messiah  were  in  accoi'dance  with  truth 
and  right,  measure  for  measure,  they  confess,  saying,  All  we  like 
sheep  had  gone  astray  (iiyn,  as  Gen.  xxxvii.  1 5),  zee  turned  each 
to  his  own  way — one  going  to  meet  another  and  look  his  com- 
panion in  the  face,  as  the  manner  is  of  those  who  are  in  bewil- 
derment or  sm-prise :  but  the  Lord — God  himself  and  his  court 
of  judgment — Imth  now  laid  upon  us  the  iniquity  of  us  all 
through  him — through  him,  viz,  because  his  iniquities  mounted 
upwards  in  order  to  intercede  against  us,  that  the  Almighty 
might  not  delay  our  punishment.  ''  Seeing,  then,  the  calamity 
impending,  and  themselves  unable  to  escape  from  it,  they  pro- 
ceed here  to  recount  all  the  '  deeds  which  should  not  be  done ' 
which  they  liad  done  towards  Israel,  and  all  the  hard  treatment 
which  they  had  received  at  their  hands,  exclaiming,  See,  how 
this  people,  which  now  is  in  the  height  of  fortune,  was  once 
oppressed  and  afflicted — so  the  word  is  to  be  rendered — and 
received  all  its  sufferings  without  opening  their  mouth  !  they 
were  unable  to  say  a  word  before  us,  for  the  priests  of  the  in- 
quisition would  prohibit  them  even  to  utter  a  whisper  in  any 
way  opposed  to  their  will,  or  to  the  ordinances  of  their  kings 
and  rulers  :  thus  they  were,  moreover,  in  our  eyes  as  a  la/nib 
dumb  before  her  shearers :  the  thought  is  repeated  in  order  to 
indicate  two  points  about  which  the  Gentiles  will  make  state- 
ments concerning  us  :  whether  we  slew  them,  they  will  ex- 
claim, like  a  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter,  or  whether  we  seized 
their  gold  and  silver  and  all  the  desire  of  their  eyes,  as  though 
they  were  like  a  lamb  dumb  before  her  shearers, — in  either 
instance  alike  they  opened  not  their  mouth  for  fear  and  trembling. 
"  "lifytO,  i.  e.  from  the  confinement  in  which  we  held  him :  the 
root  has  here  the  same  meaning  as  in  Deut.  xxxii.  36,  where  it 
is  used  of  coercion  or  subjection  under  the  heavy  yoke  of  exile ; 
the  same  explanation  is  given  by  Qamlii  in  his  commentary. 
From  this  he  tvas  taken,  and  so  rose  to  greatness :  and  this  Jiis 
generation,  now  honoured  and  exalted,  who  could  declare  it,  or 
make  known  that  we  never  would  believe  in  its  redemption  1 


-liii.  10.]  R.  y'hoshu'a  segre.  365 

Yet  now  it  is  cut  offh-om  our  hands,  and  gone  forth  from  under 
our  burdens,  because  of  tite  land  of  life,  i.  e.  in  order  that  it 
may  be  brought  in  thither  :  and  /or  the  transgression  of  my 
people  who  laid  a  stroke  upon  them  and  severe  sufferings,  it  was 
taken  away  fi-om  us  and  conducted  into  the  position  of  honour 
in  which  it  now  is,  although  while  amongst  us  the  people  were 
accounted  only  as  so  much  cattle.  "  And  he  made,  etc. ;  for 
we  obliged  Israel  to  'buy  their  sepulchres  at  a  full  price'  out- 
side tlie  city,  like  the  wicked  who  are  treated  without  any  con- 
sideration :  and  even  if  one  wealthier  than  the  rest  in  the  nation 
thought  to  expend  much  gold  and  so  to  purchase  for  himself 
a  spot  for  his  father's  tomb,  we  never  would  give  him  permis- 
sion to  do  so,  but  forced  him  to  submit  to  burial  with  his  deaths, 
I.  e.  in  the  same  place  with  other  men  :  so  greatly  was  this 
nation  oi)pressed  and  afflicted  amongst  us,  although  they  had 
done  no  violence,  neither  was  guile  in  their  mouth  !  And  treat- 
ment such  as  this  is  falling  upon  us  continually  in  the  course 
of  our  exile.  '"  We  now  see,  the  nations  proceed,  that  the 
Lord  was  pleased  to  bruise  and  punish  him,  and  to  put  him 
to  sickness,  in  order  that  afterwards,  in  the  days  of  the  Mes- 
siah, the  penalty  might  fall  upon  us  in  the  manner  described, 
Ezek.  XXV.  14,  'And  I  will  lay  my  vengeance  upon  Edom 
by  the  hand  of  my  people  Israel ; '  for  Nero  Caesar  rose  up  to 
attack  Israel  and  said,  The  Holy  One  desired  to  lay  waste  his 
house,  and  to  wash  his  hands  on  the  man  who  does  it.  He 
went,  etc.  ^  And  because  this  people  2^f^tteth  his  soul  in  his 
hand  s  to  endure  cheerfully  all  the  repulses  and  other  misfor- 
tunes which  have  befallen  it,  it  shall  see  seed  and  lengthen  days, 
for  the  Almighty  will  reward  it  with  prosperity,  and  the  wonders 
of  celestial  wisdom  will  be  multiplied  in  it,  one  rich  and  perfect 
blessing  bringing  many  others  in  its  train ;  and  tJie  Lord's  plea- 
sure shall  prosper  in  his  hand,  for  '  God  maketh  a  decree,  and 


'  Gittim,  fol.  56  :  the  entire  passage  will  be  found  above,  p.  132. 
K  See  Judg.  xii.  3,  1  Sam.  xix.  5. 


366  R.  y'iiosht-'a  segre.  [liii.  11,12. 

the  righteous  aniiulletli  it,'  as  our  Rabbis  say  on  the  verse 
(2  Sam.  xxiii.  3),  '  A  i-ighteous  man,  ruling  in  the  fear  of  God  '>,' 
and  also  the  book  Zohar  on  liOv.  v.  i.  "  Calamities  will  attack 
the  nations,  so  that  in  spite  of  themselves  they  will  reluctantly 
be  telling  the  praises  of  Israel :  how  for  tlie  toil  and  misery 
which  he  endured,  his  soxd  should  now  see  seed,  and  he  should 
prolong  his  days  with  such  increase  of  wisdom  that  at  last  by 
his  knoivledge  this  nation  which  once  was  but  my  servant  should 
become  ruler  over  many.  ^^  Tlierefore  I  will  allot  to  liim  all 
the  honour  which  his  high  position  will  demand;  and  with  the 
mightif  of  his  nation  he  u'ill  divide  our  spoil ;  and  all  this  glory 
will  be  attained  by  him  because  he  poured  out  his  soid  to  die, 
cmd  was  numbered  with  the  transgressors — for  all  held  him  to 
be  an  evil-doer — and  received  at  their  hands  the  sinful  treat- 
ment denoted  by  the  expression  the  sin  of  many.  And  now 
with  the  measure  which  we  meted  out  to  him  he  will  mete  to 
us  again  ;  for  he  will  rise  up  as  a  lion  beside  the  men  who  once 
trausgi'essed  against  him,  and  smote  him,  and  reviled  him,  and 
contemned  him,  and  attach  them,  as  David  bade  Benaiah  attack 
Joab  (i  Kings  ii.  29).  At  this  point,  therefore,  the  prophet 
concludes,  beginning  the  next  chapter  with  the  words,  '  Shout, 
O  barren  one,  burst  forth  into  singing,'  etc.,  by  way  of  comfort 
to  our  nation,  who  are  thereby  rcpi'esentcd  beyond  doubt  as 
redeemed,  and  adorned  with  glory  and  honour. 

h  Mo'ed  Qafon,  i6b. 


XLVII.     R.  DAVID   ALTSCHULER. 


LTI,  "  ^^atJ'S  shall 2^'osper,  as  i  Sam.  xviii.  14;  for  a  man  who 
prosiiers  iii  anything  is  considered  to  have  been  guided  in  his 
actions  by  discretion  (?3tf).  "  IJOOti',  were  astonished,  as  Job 
xxi.  5.  p,  truly,  as  Num.  xxvii.  7.  HNIO,  the  fair  and  clear 
complexion  of  the  face.  "iNfl,  the/orm  of  the  person.  ^''  np,  to 
sprinkle,  as  Is.  Ixiii.  3.  ivap%  to  c^oa'c,  as  Job  v.  16.  IJJUnn, 
to  observe  attentively,  as  i  Kings  iii.  2 1 . 

LIII.  '  ""JD  ^Jy,  /or  whose  sake  1  nn!?J3,  revealed.  ^  pJV,  a 
tender  twig  put  forth  by  a  tree,  as  Ezek.  xvii.  22.  n''^,  barren 
and  dry.  "nn,  comeliness.  imJ^nJl,  the  1  stands  in  the  place  of 
C:  so  Exod.  XXV.  2, '<^ai  they  take,'etc.  'blU,  forsaken.  CC'iN, 
for  D^ti'JX.  *  NC'J,  to  bear  as  a  burden,  yi:3,  prostrated  and 
debilitated,  as  Josh.  viii.  15.  n:yD,  afflicted.  '' Nini,  the  1  is  in 
place  of  IN  {or).  TPno,  pamged,  from  pTl  (Ps.  xlviii.  7).  NSHD, 
broken  and  crushed.  1D10,  chastisement.  1J"'Dl7tJ',  our  p)eace. 
n"l13n,  stripes,  as  Is.  i.  6.  "  l^yn,  we«<  astray.  1J''J3,  from  nj£3 
(Hos.  iii.  i).  y^JSn,  caused  to  meet  on  him  for  his  injury,  as 
2  Sam.  i.  15.  ^  5J*33,  was  oppressed  by  the  seizui'e  of  his  wealth  ; 
the  word  is  used  of  the  exaction  of  money,  2  Kings  xxiii.  35. 
Nini,  1  again  in  lieu  of  IN  (o?-).  njyj,  was  afflicted.  n2i2h,  to 
slaughter.  72V,  as  Is.  xviii.  7.  HMflJ,  the  verb  signifies  to  cut 
off  the  ivool.  **  "i^iy,  the  prison,  or  place  of  detention,  in  which 
he  was  confined;  cf  Jei".  xxxiii.  i.  nnii:;>^,  to  declare,  as  Ps. 
cxliii.  5.     "^133,  to  be  cut  oj^,  as  Lam.  iii.  54.     y;3,  prostration 


368  R.  DAVID    ALTSCHULER.        [liii.  9-1 2.  lii.  13- 

and  weakness.  ID?  =  U7t> :  inasmuch  as  the  singular  is  used 
throughout  to  designate  the  whole  nation,  the  prophet  here 
intimates  this  by  the  plural  tJiem.  ®  l^D'J?,  the  ruler,  for  a  man 
who  is  wealthy  is  generally  also  in  authority.  VniM,  in  his 
deaths.  ^'*1^J^^,  bruised  or  crushed,  vnn,  from  npn.  Dti'X, 
sin  or  transgression.  ^^  7D]},  toil  or  sorrow.  ^-  CtDl^y,  the 
mighty.  7?tJ',  sjwil.  nnn,  in  return  for.  myn,  to  j)our  out, 
as  Ps.  cxli.  8.  nJOJ,  to  be  counted.  ND'J,  to  hear.  S?''33\  to 
intercede  or  solicit,  as  Jer.  vii.  16. 

B. 

LII.  ^'  Then  shall  my  servant  Israel  prosper :  the  prophet 
speaks  of  them  in  the  singular,  as  is  constantly  the  cu-stoni  in 
Scripture.  He  will  he  high  and  exalted,  etc.  :  the  idea  is  re- 
peated under  diflferent  words,  in  order  to  express  the  vastness  of 
his  dominion  and  gi'eatness.  '^^In  proportion  to  the  astonishment 
which  many  felt  at  their  humiliation,  saying,  Trxdy  (p)  his 
countenance  is  marred  beyond  man,  and  his  form  changed  be- 
yond the  sons  of  men,  meaning  thereby  to  imply  that  he  was 
deprived  of  all  power,  and  devoid  of  courage,  ^'^  in  exactly  the 
same  proportion  will  he  have  dominion,  and  his  hand  will  pre- 
vail, and  his  heart  be  strong,  in  order  for  him  to  sprinkle  the 
blood  of  7nany  nations  devoted  to  idolatry.  At  news  of  this, 
the  kings  of  those  nations  will  shut  their  mouths,  so  as  not  to 
speak  a  word  in  the  dei)th  of  their  amazement :  because  that 
which  was  not  told  tliem  have  they  seen — their  own  eyes  have 
beheld  greatness  far  transcending  any  report  which  might  have 
reached  them,  and  that  which  they  have  not  heard — a  repetition 
of  the  same  idea — they  have  perceived,  i.  e.  observed  with  the 
minutest  attention  what  actually  occurred. 

LIII.  ^  Who,  the  nations  will  then  say,  believeth  our  report  ?  we 
have  never  hitherto  seen  it  so  with  our  eyes,  and  who  amongst 
us  all  believes  the  report  which  we  hear  of  the  increase  of  great- 
ness and  power  which  has  fallen  to  Israel's  lot  ?  and  the  strength 


-liii.  5.]  R.  DAVID   ALTSCIIULER.  369 

of  the  LorcVs  arm,  for  whose  sake  was  it  ever  revealed  from  the 
(lays  of  old,  that  we  should  believe  it  had  now  been  revealed 
for  the  sake  of  Israel  1  ^  Before  this  greatness  came  to  him 
he  sprang  up  like  a  sucker  which  derives  its  nourishment 
not  directly  from  the  soil  but  from  a  tree,  the  prophet  means 
to  say  that  whatever  affluence  Israel  had  had,  came  to  him 
through  the  intervention  of  the  idolatrous  nations  amongst 
whom  he  dwelt.  And  as  a  root  o%(,t  of  the  dry  earth,  for  the 
little  which  he  derived  from  himself  came  speedily  to  an  end 
like  a  root  rising  up  out  of  the  parched  and  arid  soil  which 
'is  quickly  cut  off  and  withered:'  and  just  as  such  a  root 
would  have  no  form  or  comeliness,  so  the  affluence  enjoyed 
by  Israel  lacked  all  completeness  and  polish :  and  tvhen  we 
looked  at  him,  we  found  in  him  no  aspect  of  beauty  which  might 
lead  us  to  desire  him ;  in  other  words,  we  could  detect  in  him 
no  attractive  feature — neither  bodily  prowess  nor  strength  of 
heart ;  and  hence  we  simply  loathed  him.  ^  He  was  despised  in 
the  eyes  of  all,  and  forlorn  of  men,  for  none  of  the  idolaters 
would  associate  with  him  on  account  of  his  humiliation  ;  a  man 
of  pains  and  knoivn  of  sickness,  well  known  to  all  as  a  great 
suffei'er,  and,  as  though  he  had  hidden  his  face  from  us,  that  we 
might  not  see  him,  we  could  never  look  him  in  the  face  :  he  was 
so  afflicted  and  dejected  by  the  exile  and  its  attendant  miseries, 
that  we  contracted  an  aversion  to  gaze  upon  him.  And  so  lie 
was  despised  in  our  eyes,  and  we  esteemed  him  not,  for  we  said, 
The  hand  of  the  Lord  hath  done  this,  because  he  hath  rejected 
him.  *  But,  in  truth,  the  Loi'd  had  not  so  rejected  him  :  every 
sickness  and  every  pain  which  he  endured  was  on  our  account, 
they  were  what  we  inflicted  on  him  through  our  own  evil  will : 
yet  we  thought  in  error  that  he  had  been  stricken  and  smitten 
of  God,  because  he  had  rejected  him,  and  that  it  was  by  his 
hand  that  he  was  thus  afflicted  with  chastisements.  *  Or  (1)  the 
truth  might  have  been  that  these  sufferings  were  sent  by  the 
Almighty,  though  not  because  he  had  i-ejected  him  for  the  evil 
of  his  doings  :  on  the  contrary,  the  measure  of  his  pangs  was 

Bb 


370  R.  DAVID    ALTSCHUI.ER.  [liii.  6- 

filled  up  in  order  that  the  transgressions  of  all  those  who  are 
devoted  to  falte  worships  might  be  atoned  for  through  thera. 
Bruised  for  our  iniquities :  the  same  idea  is  repeated  in  dif- 
ferent words.  The  chastisement,  etc.  :  the  sufferings  which 
ought  to  have  come  upon  us,  in  order,  by  blotting  out  our 
iniquity,  to  perpetuate  owr  peace,  fell  ^ipon  Jiim  :  and  hy  the 
stripes  which  came  on  him  the  plagues  of  our  iniquity  toere 
healed — they  were  atoned  for,  and  so  dispersed.  The  clause  is 
parallel  to  the  two  which  precede.  ®  So  great  was  our  iniquity 
that  tve  all  went  astray  from  the  path  of  truth  and  right  like 
sheep,  for  when  one  in  a  flock  loses  its  way,  the  others  follow- 
ing after  it  lose  their  way  likewise  :  in  other  words,  our  fathers 
wandered  from  the  way  of  truth,  and  therefore  we  also  simply 
followed  after  them.  We  have  turned  each  to  his  oum  way; 
i.  e.  would  indeed  that  we  had  been  ouly  like  such  a  flock,  in 
which  one  lamb  merely  strays  after  another  !  it  was,  however, 
far  otherwise  :  each  one  of  us  turned  to  his  own  u^ay,  and  these 
ways  were  none  better  than  the  rest;  they  were  all  equally 
corrupt  a :  but,  this  being  the  case,  what  guilt  is  there  resting 
on  us  !  But  the  Lord  struck  him  loith  the  iniquity  of  us  all ; 
i,  e.  it  was  our  iniquity  which,  by  the  decree  of  the  Almighty, 
smote  and  punished  him.  ^  For  this  cause  he  tvas  oppressed  by 
the  seizure  of  his  wealth,  or  afflicted  with  punishment  of  the 
body,  in  case  he  were  poor  and  had  nothing  to  give :  yet  he 
opened  not  his  mouth  to  murmur  or  complain,  for  he  dreaded 
lest  his  persecutors  might  ill-use  him  the  more,  but  was  as  a 
sheep  led  to  the  slaughter,  and  as  a  lamb  standing  before  the 
man  who  shears  ofi"  her  wool ;  for  the  sheep  opens  not  its  mouth, 
and  the  lamb  is  dumb  and  emits  no  cry :  in  the  same  way, 
Isi'ael  under  his  exactors  uttered  no  sound  of  complaint.  **  From 
the  house  of  bondage  in  which  he  was  confined,  and  from  the 
place  of  judgm,ent  in  which  he  had  been  condemned,  he  was 
taken  off"  to  this  oppression  or  aftliction  :  nothing  Avould  procure 

»  Compare  above,  pp.  267,  307. 


-liii.   10.]  K.  DAVID    ALTSCHULER.  371 

liis  release :  and  who  could  tell  of  all  the  sufferings  endured 
l>y  him  throughout  the  days  of  liis  generation  ?  for  the  end  of 
it  all  was,  that  he  was  ctit  off  from  the  land  of  life  :  in  a  word, 
his  sufferings  accelerated  his  death.  For  tlie  transgression,  etc.  : 
so  every  oue  will  be  saying,  This  stroke  came  not  on  them  for 
their  own  iniquity,  hut  for  the  transgression  of  my  i^eo'ple  : 
either,  i.  e.  my  people  transgressed,  when  their  evil  purposes 
led  them  to  afflict  them,  or  they  were  jilagued  in  order  to  atone 
for  the  transgressions  of  my  people.  *  He  resigned  himself  to 
be  buried  with  the  wicked — to  be  like  them  in  the  contempt 
and  miserable  treatment  which  is  their  lot ;  he  would  not  dis- 
obey the  Law  in  order  to  escape  the  same  fate.  And  ivith  the 
rich  in  his  deaths ;  the  sentence  still  depends  upon  JDM :  he  re- 
signed himself  in  accordance  ivith  (nx)  the  will  of  the  wealthy 
magistrate  to  all  the  forms  of  death  to  which  he  might  sentence 
him,  in  order  to  abide  firmly  by  his  own  faith.  And  yet,  the 
prophet  continues,  such  a  sentence  as  this  was  passed  quite 
gratuitously,  and  not  because  of  the  violence  which  he  had  done, 
or  the  guile  which  was  in  his  mouth — he  was  giiilty  of  neither 
the  oue  nor  the  other — but  simply  from  a  spirit  of  malice. 
'"  Here  the  prophet,  as  it  were,  replies  to  the  doubts  supposed 
to  be  expressed  by  the  idolaters,  whether,  namely,  the  calami- 
ties which  came  upon  Israel  were  occasioned  by  the  wickedness 
of  their  own  hearts,  and  not  by  the  decree  of  the  Deity,  or 
whether,  again,  they  were  sent  from  God  in  order  that  they 
might  atone  for  the  iniquity  of  the  idolaters  themselves.  Neither 
of  these  suppositions,  he  tells  them,  is  true :  the  Lord  was 
pleased  to  bruise  him,  he  put  him  to  sickness,  and  by  his  decree 
all  this  took  place  :  the  object  of  Israel's  calamities^  however, 
was  not  that  they  might  atone  for  the  sins  of  other  men,  but 
rather  to  'prove  him  and  do  good  to  him  at  his  latter  end:' 
God,  as  it  wei*e,  said,  I  will  see  now  if  his  soul  will  make  itself 
a  tresj^ass-offenng,  not  scnitinizing  curiously  into  my  dealings, 
but  confessing  that  what  came  upon  it  had  come  justly,  inas- 
much as  he  bad  sinned  and  incurred  guilt :  if  it  does  so,  his 

B  b  2 


372  R.  DAVID    ALTSCHULER.  [liii.  ii,  U. 

reward  shall  be  that  all  his  life  lie  ehall  see  his  seed  with  his 
own  eyes,  and  prolong  his  days,  and  still  none  of  them  will  die 
during  his  lifetime ;  and  the  jAeasure  of  the  Lord  [will  be  this, 
that]  he  shall  prosper  with  his  hands,  because  he  stood  under 
trial,  and  did  not  question  the  divine  justice.  ^'  From  the 
travail  of  his  soul  which  he  saiv,  he  shall  receive  profit  and  be 
satisfied :  hy  his  knoivledge  my  servant  ivill  make  it  his  aim  to 
justify  the  Just  One,  acknowledging  that  what  he  had  endured 
had  been  in  order  to  blot  out  the  guilt  of  sin,  so  that  the  reward 
for  his  good  deeds  might  not  be  withheld.  My  servant  unto 
many :  the  prophet  means  to  say  that  Israel  was  not  a  servant 
of  tJie  many  idolaters,  as  he  would  have  been,  had  he  hearkened 
to  their  voice  in  the  matter  of  his  religion,  but  that  he  was  my 
servant  unto  or  before  them,  not  listening  to  their  persuasions, 
but  bowing  his  shoulder  to  bear  whatever  injustice  they  might 
exhibit  towards  him,  as  a  punishment  for  his  refusal  to  be  per- 
suaded by  them.  ^^  Since,  then,  he  thus  endured  the  trial,  / 
will  give  him  a  portion  in  the  inheritance  of  the  many  nations, 
and  the  mighty,  i.  e.  the  idolaters  who  are  strong,  he  shall  divide 
to  himself  as  spoil,  in  return  for  his  having  poured  out  and 
abandoned  Jiis  soul  to  death,  and  for  having  been  numbered  by 
the  heathen  untJi  the  generality  of  transgressors  and  renegades, 
'  with  full  plenty  of  contempt  and  indignation '  (Esther  i.  1 8). 
Yet  he  carried  the  sin  of  many,  i.  e.  bent  his  shoulder  to  endure 
all  the  sins  perpetrated  against  him  by  the  many  nations  which 
inflicted  on  him  punishments  and  pains  :  and  unto  the  idolaters, 
who  were  thus  the  transgressors  against  him,  he  made  suppli- 
cation, his  eyes  being  ever  fixed  towards  them  '  as  the  eyes  of 
sei-\'ants  unto  the  hand  of  their  masters.'  And  hence  divine 
justice  has  ordained  that,  in  return  for  his  past  humiliation  and 
subjection,  he  will,  when  the  hour  of  redemption  has  arrived, 
assume  the  position  of  sovereign  over  them. 


SHORT    PASSAGES. 

a.     R.  David  ben  Abraham  the  Qaraite. 

tha,  Ps.  Ivi.  I.  n}V  here  denotes  the  same  people  which  are 
indicated,  Cant.  ii.  14,  by  the  words,  'My  dove  in  the  clifts  of 
the  rock.'  And  they  are  styled  dumb,  on  account  of  their 
silence  even  from  the  language  of  rightful  complaint,  comp. 
Ps.  xxxix.  3,  10  j  and  in  the  same  way  Isaiah,  describing  a  por- 
tion of  the  remnant  %  says,  '  He  was  oppressed,  etc.  .  .  ,  and  as 
a  lamb  dumb  before  her  shearers,  so  he  opened  not  his  mouth.' 

b.     R.  YoNAH  Ibn  JanAh. 

13n.  The  substantive  nilin  denotes  always  a  wound,  or  the 
mark  of  a  wound,  as  Ex.  xxi.  25,  Ps.  xxxviii.  6,  Prov.  xx.  30. 
From  the  same  root  comes,  as  I  believe,  miin,  Is.  liii.  5>  which 
is  not  a  substantive  of  the  form  ni133,  riB'vn,  Ex.  xxxii.  18, 
miD3,  Dcut.  xxi.  17,  but  an  infinitive,  the  relation  which  it 
bears  to  its  suffix  being  the  same  as  in  DPlp,  Hos.  xi.  3,  which 
signifies  taking  them :  in  the  same  way  the  prophet  means  to 
say  here,  in  wouiuling  him.  The  sense  is  as  follows  : — ^After 
having  described  the  excellence  of  this  good  man,  so  truly 
humble,  yet  so  depressed  in  spirit  through  grief  at  the  state 
of  unbelief  in  which  the  people  were  sunk  as  regards  the 
law,  and  despised  by  the  men  of  his  genei-ation,  as  it  is  said, 

»  Compare  p.  61. 


374  SHORT   PASSAGES. 

'  Despised  and  forlorn  of  men,'  etc.,  the  prophet  continues,  say- 
ing, We,  when  we  beheld  his  suflferings  and  sickness,  thought 
him  put  to  sickness  and  pain  by  the  Creator  for  his  own  de- 
serts; but  lo,  his  sickness  was  caused  through  his . sorrow  for 
our  Bins  :  the  chastisement  of  us  all  and  our  wrongs  reached 
him,  and  by  his  wounds  and  sickness  tve  were  healed.  In  thus 
wounding  him,  we  all  erred  like  beasts,  and  not  one  of  us 
turned  from  his  wicked  way:  God,  however,  'brought  upon 
him  the  iniquity  of  us  all,'  i.  e.  it  was  only  for  our  iniquities 
that  he  thus  tried  him.  IJWCi'  I  explain  to  signify  the  whole 
of  us,  as  in  Jer.  xiii.  19,  where  D''CivC>  Tw'i.T]  means  'they  arc  all 
led  into  captivity.'  ??nD,  made  sick  and  wounded,  being  the 
participle  passive  from  the  same  verb  of  which  nPPiniO,  Is.  li.  9, 
is  the  active  participle. 


C.       E..    MOSHEH    BEN   MaIMON. 

What  is  to  be  the  manner  of  Messiah's  advent,  and  where 
v/ill  be  the  place  of  his  first  appearance  ?  He  will  make  his 
first  appearance  in  the  land  of  Israel,  as  it  is  written, '  The  Lord, 
whom  ye  seek,  will  come  suddenly  to  his  temple'  (Mai.  iii.  i) ; 
but  as  to  the  manner  of  his  appearance,  until  it  has  taken 
place,  thou  canst  not  know  this  so  as  for  it  to  be  said  of 
him  that  he  is  '  the  son  of  such  a  one,  and  is  of  such  and  such 
a  family : '  there  shall  rise  up  one  of  whom  none  have  known 
before,  and  the  signs  and  wonders  which  they  shall  see  performed 
by  him  will  be  the  proofs  of  his  true  origin  ;  for  the  Almighty, 
where  he  declares  to  us  his  mind  upon  this  matter,  says, '  Behold 
a  man  whose  name  is  the  Branch,  and  he  shall  branch  forth  out 
of  his  place'  (Zech.  vi.  12).  And  Isaiah  speaks  similarly  of  the 
time  when  he  will  appear,  without  his  father  or  mother  or 
family  being  known,  He  came  wp  as  a  sucker  before  him,  and  as 
a  root  out  of  the  dry  earth,  etc.  But  the  unique  phenomenon 
attending  his  manifestation  is,  that  all  the  kings  of  the  earth 


SHORT   PASSAGES.  375 

will  be  thrown  into  terror  at  the  fame  of  him — their  kingdoms 
will  be  in  consternation,  and  they  themselves  will  be  devising 
whether  to  oppose  him  with  arms,  or  to  adopt  some  different 
course,  confessing,  in  fact,  their  inability  to  contend  with  him  or 
ignore  his  presence,  and  so  confounded  at  the  wonders  which 
they  will  see  him  work,  that  they  will  lay  their  hands  upon 
their  mouth ;  \in  Jhe  words  of  Isaiah,  when  describing  the  man-  "^ 
ner  in  which  the  kings  will  hearken  to  him,  At  him  kings  vnll 
shut  their  mouth ;  for  that  which  had  not  been  told  them  have 
they  seen,  and  that  which  they  had  not  heard  they  have  per- 
ceived. 

d.     R.  Meir  ben  Shim'on. 

Behold  my  servant,  etc.  This  Parashah  is  applied  by  the 
Nazarenes  to  Jesus;  such  an  exjilanation,  however,  is  untenable 
even  on  the  ground  of  their  own  allegations.  For  example,  they 
assert  Jesus  to  be  the  son  of  God,  and  to  be  himself  God,  the 
whole  being  thus  God,  and  at  the  same  time  one  :  but  if  so,  how  is 
he  called  my  servant  2  Almighty  God  is  not  a  servant ;  on  the 
contrary,  all  are  his  servants.  If  to  this  it  be  replied  that  Jesus 
is  termed  servant,  as  being  a  servant  of  the  Godhead,  do  not 
the  Christians  assert  that  he  is  God  %  how,  then,  can  one  who 
is  the  Creator  of  all  and  the  Lord  of  all  receive  such  a  title  ? 
Again,  how  can  it  be  said  that  he  should  prosper  1 — for  this  is 
the  meaning  of  ?''D!J''',  as  in  i  Sam.  xviii.  14:  in  what  did  his 
prosperity  consist?  were  not  his  misfortunes  and  general  ill- 
success  patent  to  all,  when  the  Pharisees  and  doctors  and,  in 
fact,  the  whole  people  condemned  him  to  death  (as  is  related 
in  their  own  book),  and  he  was  slain  with  his  disciples'?  And 
how  can  it  be  promised  that  he  should  be  high  and  exalted  and 
lofty  exceedingly  ?  Jesus  in  his  lifetime  was  only  thus  exalted 
at  the  time  of  his  crucifixion :  do  you  not  see  how  till  then  he 
was  in  fear  and  trepidation  daily?  If  you  reply  that  the  phrase 
refers  to  his  Godhead,  not  only  is  God  called  a  servant,  but, 


376  SHORT   PASSAGES. 

besides  this,  the  G-odhead  is  unchangeably  'high  and  exalted' 
through  all  eternity ;  how,  then,  could  it  be  said  that  he  '  tviU 
be  high  '  now  1  And  if  you  suppose  that  he  was  '  high '  through 
the  multitude  of  miracles  which  he  performed,  he  only  did  these 
in  the  manner  suggested  by  the  Pharisees  and  doctors,  viz.  by 
sorcery,  which  indeed  he  persevered  in  till  at  last  they  wreaked 
their  will  upon  him  in  the  way  that  they  did.  Again,  it  is  said 
in  the  same  Parashah,  Jle  shall  see  seed,  etc. ;  but  what  '  seed ' 
did  Jesus  see,  and  what  *  length  of  days  did  he  enjoy,'  and  what 
'pleasure  of  the  Lord  prospered  in  his  hand?'  did  not  both 
he  and  his  disciples  perish  after  a  short  life?  and  did  they  not 
meet  with  ruin  rather  than  prosperity  in  their  undertakings? 
If  you  fall  back  on  the  supposition  that  this  language  refers  to 
his  Deity,  the  same  objection  will  still  hold  which  I  mentioned 
above.  Again,  at  the  end  of  the  Parashah,  it  is  said,  There/ore 
I  will  divide,  etc. :  but  what  '  spoil '  was  ever  divided  to  Jesus 
'  among  many,'  and  what  happiness  was  ever  his  during  life, 
when  he  was  rather  a  '  wanderer  and  fugitive,'  and  in  constant 
terror  of  death?  If  you  suppose  the  words  to  relate  to  both 
his  Godhead  and  his  manhood  (the  latter  of  which  you  assert 
ascended  up  into  heaven),  the  whole  being  God  together,  how 
does  the  prophet  say,  '/  will  divide  him?'  would  not  he  rather 
be  himself  dividing  to  others?  and,  again,  how  does  he  say 
amongst  many,  when  his  ascension,  by  their  own  account,  took 
place  secretly,  and  not  in  the  presence  of  any  multitude?  although, 
to  be  sure,  a  great  miracle  such  as  that  ought  to  have  been 
enacted  (as  I  have  said  above)  before  as  many  witnesses  as  pos- 
sible :  in  fact,  neither  in  his  days,  nor  since,  have  the  events 
ever  happened  which  I  there  indicated  as  bound  to  occur  in 
the  time  of  the  true  Messiah.  Let  every  man  of  intelligence, 
therefore,  understand,  on  the  question  of  this  Parashah,  that  it 
refers  to  the  people  of  Israel,  who  are  oppressed  for  the  truth 
of  the  Creator  and  his  Law,  being  daily  plundered  and  despised, 
murdered  and  burnt,  as  Scripture  says,  '  For  thy  sake  are  wo 
slain  all  the  day  long,'  etc.  (Ps.  xliv.  23);  and  again, '  Thou  hast 


SHORT   PASSAGES.  377 

laid  thy  back  as  the  ground,  and  as  the  street,  to  them  that 
went  over'  (Is.  li.  23).  It  may  however,  at  the  same  time, 
be  explained  haggadically  of  the  Messiah  and  his  followers — 
though  the  meaning  is  still  practically  unchanged — as  express- 
ing, namely,  the  assurance  that,  in  tbe  time  of  Deliverance,  the 
Creator  will  divide  amongst  them  the  sjpoil  of  Gog  and  Magog 
and  all  his  host,  as  it  is  written,  'And  they  shall  spoil  their 
spoilers,  and  plunder  those  that  plunder  them' (Ezek.  xxxix.  10); 
and  again,  'Instead  of  bronze  I  will  bring  gold,'  etc.  (Is.  Ix.  17) — 
an  occasion  to  which  numerous  predictions  relate.  Isaiah  says, 
viy  servant  in  the  singular,  as  the  manner  is  in  prophecy ;  for 
example,  Jer.  xxx.  10,  Is.  xli.  8,  and  frequently  besides.  Al- 
though what  we  have  stated  here  is  sufficient  for  every  one  of 
intelligence,  we  shall  nevertheless,  by  God's  will,  in  §  3,  offer 
an  explanation  of  the  entire  Parashah,  word  by  word,  in  accord- 
ance with  its  true  import. 

The  Parashah  before  us  is  expounded  in  Sotah,  §  i,  of  the 
Messiah  ^  :  by  the  literal  method  it  may,  however,  be  explained  of 
Israel,  for  there  are  several  passages  in  which  the  prophets  speak 
of  the  Israelitish  nation  in  the  singular  number,  as  Is.xliv.  2,  xlii.  i, 
and  elsewhere,  even  before  we  arrive  at  the  present  Parashah. 
But  the  Nazarenes,  in  spite  of  this,  apply  it  to  the  Messiah, 
whom  they  contend  to  have  been  that  man  [Jesus],  who  they 
affirm  was  the  Messiah  and  also  God,  whose  servants  they  are, 
and  whom  they  accept  as  divine :  it  may  be  objected,  however, 
that  if  he  was  God,  both  in  body  and  spirit,  he  could  not  be 
termed  '  servant : '  whose  sei'vant,  indeed,  could  he,  under  such 
circumstances,  have  been?  Or,  if  it  be  thought  that  the  ex- 
pression relates  to  his  body,  how  did  the  prophet  say  that  he 
would  be  'high  and  exalted?'  we  do- not  find  that  in  his  body 
he  was  ever  'exalted'  except  at  his  crucifixion:  on  the  con- 
trary, he  fled,  now  into  Egypt,  now  to  other  places :  if,  again, 
it  be  said  to  relate  to  his  Godhead,  how  could  the  Godhead  be 

^  Not  to  be  found  in  our  editions  ;  but  cf.  the  extract  from  Yalqut,  p.  9. 


378  SHORT   PASSAGES. 

termed  a  'servant?'  would  he  not  then  be  the  Creator,  and  all 
besides  be  his  creatures  and  his  servants?  If,  now,  you  reply 
that  the  allusion  is  to  his  flesh  after  the  resurrection  (for  they 
say  that  he  ascended  on  the  third  day  to  heaven  ^),  who,  pray, 
witnessed  his  ascen!^ion?  if  such  a  marvellous  evei.t  took  place, 
it  should  iiave  been  transacted  in  i)ublic  before  the  whole  people, 
just  as  his  condemnation  also  had  taken  place  in  public :  it  is 
imposi^ible  to  put  faith  in  miracles  which  so  easily  admit  of 
being  controverted,  that  the  Pharisees  said,  '  He  did  them  openly 
that  men  might  believe  in  him,  in  the  name  of  devils.'  But  the 
miracles  of  his  resurrection  aud  ascension  (which  ought  to  have 
been  achieved  so  as  to  be  seen  of  all,  in  order  that  the  people 
might  not  persevere  in  their  rejection  of  him)  were  in  fact  trans- 
acted in  secret;  and  the  Law  says  (Dent,  xxvii.  i8),  'Cursed 
is  he  that  maketh  the  blind  to  err  in  the  way.'  All  this  we 
have  stated  above,  in  another  place.  The  proof  that  'my  ser- 
vant '  denotes  Israel,  is  to  be  found  in  the  passages  already  cited 
from  the  previous  Parashahs,  xliv.  2,  xlii.  i;  also  xlii.  17,  'Who 
is  blind  as  my  servant?'  after  which  the  words,  verse  22,  'But 
tJds  is  a  people  robbed  and  spoiled,'  shew  that  the  'servant'  is 
the  nation  plundered  by  their  enemies  in  captivity — a  conclu- 
sion which  is  further  corroborated  by  verses  24,  25,  'Who  gave 
Jacob  for  a  spoil,  and  Israel  to  the  robbers?  did  not  the  Lord, 
he  afjainst  whom?'  etc. 


e.     R.  Moed'khai  ben  Y'hosafah. 

This  Parashah  is  said  by  the  Nazarenes  to  refer  throughout 
to  their  Messiah,  wlio  suffered  for  their  salvation;  and  they 
affii-m  that  this  is  indicated  by  Isaiah  himself  in  the  words,  But 
we  thought  him  stricken,  and  smitten  God,  and  afflicted,  which 
declare  plainly  that  he  who  was  thus  stricken  and  smitten  was 

•^  R.  Mcir's  acquaintance  with  the  Gospels,  it  will  be  observed,  is  not 
distinguished  for  accuracy. 


SHORT   PASSAGES.  379 

God.  They  omit  however  to  take  account  of  the  expressions 
used  in  the  text,  or  to  consider  that  the  prophet  has  been  all 
along  speaking  of  the  captivity,  as  lii.  3,  '  Ye  were  sold  for 
nought,  and  not  for  money  shall  ye  be  redeemed,'  and,  '  Fear  not 
Jacob,  and  my  servant  Israel'  (xliv.  2,  and  often  similarly  besides); 
again,  'The  God  of  Israel  will  be  your  rereward'  (lii.  12)  to 
gather  in  the  outcasts  of  Israel,  and  that  in  continuation  of  the 
same  idea  he  here  begins.  Behold  my  servant  shall  prosper,  i.  e. 
there  will  yet  be  a  time  in  which  my  servant,  already  mentioned 
above,  shall  prosper  and  be  exalted.  And  although  while  in 
exile  his  depression  was  so  great  that  his  countenance  loas 
marred  beyond  man,  and  his  form,  beyond  the  sons  of  men, 
there  still  will  come  a  time  when  men  will  be  proportionately 
astonished  at  his  exaltation ;  for  then  his  salvation  will  sprout 
forth  suddenly,  and  come  up  be/we  the  Almighty  like  a  sucker 
shooting  up  before  the  tree  that  has  been  hewn  down  itself, 
whilst  its  stump  revives.  The  nations  now  say.  Surely  he 
hath  carried  our  sicknesses,  etc.;  for  Israel  bears  during  his 
exile  all  the  pains  and  sufferings  which  they  impose  upon  him : 
but  he,  I.  e.  either  the  servant  Jacob,  or  the  Messiah  who  will 
be  king  over  the  seed  of  Jacob,  was  wounded  or  bruised  for  the 
iniquity  of  the  Gentiles,  in  order  that  he  might  receive  the 
penalty  on  their  behalf.  All  we,  they  continue,  like  sheep  went 
astray ;  for  Israel  is  to  be  opjyressed  and  afflicted,  yet  without 
op>ening  his  mouth,  for  he  will  endure  all  for  the  gloi'j'  of  the 
Creator :  for  coercion  and  judgment  he  was  taken  atvay, — he 
was  taken  out  of  the  world  in  consequence  of  the  acts  of  oppres- 
sion and  injustice  perpetrated  upon  him  whilst  in  exile.  But 
loho  at  that  time  would  believe,  when  he  ivas  cut  off  from  the  land 
of  life  for  the  transgression  of  my  people,  a  stroke  to  them,  that 
all  that  he  had  done  to  them  was  in  consequence  of  their  trans- 
gression, in  order  that  the  Creator  might  take  vengeance  on 
them?  And  he  made  his  grave  with  the  wicked,  etc.,  for  they 
spilt  their  blood  and  bm-ied  them  with  contumely  in  the  sepul- 
chres of  the  wicked,  as  it  is  written,  'Was  Abner  to  die  as  a 


380  SHORT    PASSAGES. 

fool  dieth?'  (2  Sam.  iii.  33):  thus  they  resigned  themselves  to 
martjTdom,  tJie  rich  even  preparing  himself  to  meet  death  under 
two  forms  ('  in  his  deaths '),  the  actual  dissolution  of  his  person, 
and  the  destniction  of  his  substance;  for  he  loved  the  Lord  not 
merely  in  '  all  his  soul,'  but  also  in  '  all  his  strength.'  But  the 
Almighty  was  pleased  thus  to  bruise  1dm,  for  the  purpose  of 
blotting  out  his  iniquities.  If,  then,  his  soul  maketh  a  trespass- 
offering,  admitting  its  guilt  and  accepting  its  sufferings  as  sent 
upon  it  in  love,  then  he  will  see  seed  and  have  long  life,  and 
for  the  travail  of  his  soul  see  and  be  satisfied,  i.  e.  '  see '  the  con- 
solations of  prosperity,  and  'be  satisfied'  with  delights.  And 
for  his  sufferings  in  exile  he  will  justify  amongst  many  the  Just 
One  of  the  world,  as  the  prophet  says,  By  his  knowledge  my 
servant  will  justify  the  Just  One — i.  e.  God — ztnto  many,  con- 
fessing him  to  be  righteous ;  and  tJteir  iniquities,  i.  e.  those  of 
the  Gentiles,  he  will  bear  for  their  advantage.  Therefore,  be- 
cause viz.  he  thus  acknowledged  the  justice  of  the  Divine  judg- 
ment, the  time  will  come  when  /  sJiall  divide  him  amongst 
many,  or  publicly,  the  spoil  of  the  nations,  and  the  mighty  he 
shall  divide  as  spoil,  because  he  poured  out  his  soul  to  die  for 
the  glory  of  God,  and  was  counted  in  exile  as  a  transgressor 
and  sinner  himself,  and  as  a  bearer  of  iniquity,  although,  never- 
theless, like  David,  who  said  (Ps.  xxxv.  13),  'But  as  for  me, 
when  they  were  sick,  my  clothing  was  sackcloth,'  he  was  ever 
making  intercession  and  supplication  on  behalf  of  the  trans- 
gressors who  smote  him. 

I  have  now  explained  for  you  the  whole  Parashah,  There 
are  many  considerations  which  stand  in  the  way  of  the  Naza- 
rene  interpretation,  i.  Heaven  forbid  the  prophet  to  have 
used  such  an  expression  as  smitten  God!  (verse  4.)  The  verse 
simply  means  that  the  Gentiles,  during  our  captivity,  imagined 
that  it  was  of  the  Lord's  hand  that  Israel  was  smitten,  but  that 
afterwards  they  will  acknowledge  that  it  was  not  so,  and  con- 
fess that  he  was  '  wounded '  for  their  '  own  transgressions,'  that 
the  Almighty  might  take  his  vengeance  upon  them.     2.  How 


SHORT   PASSAGES.  381 

could  it  be  stated  with  any  propriety  of  the  Almighty  that  he 
Avas  'cut  off  out  of  the  land  of  life?'  3.  How  could  it  be  said 
of  him  that  he  would  'see  seed,  and  have  long  life?'  Does  the 
Almighty  need  to  be  reassured  by  such  promises  as  these'? 
4.  It  is  said,  '  The  pleasure  of  the  Lord  (is  that)  he  shall  pros- 
per with  his  hand:'  and  yet  this  Messiah  of  theirs  is  nowhere 
at  all!  5.  How  could  it  be  said,  'For  the  transgression  of  my 
people,  the  stroke  was  on  them?'  it  should  rather  have  boon 
'on  him;'  10?  is  plural,  referring  to  Israel.  6.  It  is  said,  'For 
the  travail  of  his  soul,  he  shall  see  and  be  satisfied : '  but  how  is 
this  applicable  to  him  ?  In  a  word,  the  entire  Pai'ashah  points 
to  the  very  reverse  of  what  they  believe. 

/.     R.  MosHEH  OF  Salerno. 

I  will  now,  according  to  the  best  of  my  ability,  explain  in 
what  way  this  Parashah  refers  to  Israel.  The  prophet  has 
ah-eady  several  times  spoken  of  Israel  and  Jacob  as  '  my  ser- 
vant;' accordingly,  when  he  begins  here.  Behold  my  servant 
shall  prosper,  it  is  plain  that  he  alludes  likewise  to  Israel  who 
are  now  in  exile,  but  who  will  in  time  be  redeemed.  Israel 
will  then,  he  continues,  he  high  and  exalted;  and  as  many  were 
before  astonished  at  tliee,  when  they  saw  that  his  countenance 
was  marred  beyond  any  of  the  children  of  men — you  know  how 
many  countries  there  are  where  people  ask  whether  a  Jew  has 
a  mouth,  an  eye,  a  nose,  and  so  forth — so  he  will  make  many 
nations  to  exclaim — HTH  has  here  the  sense  of  sprinkling  words, 
like  fpT],  !Mic.  ii.  6,  which  is  from  the  same  root  as  D''0  ""DDJ, 
'drops  of  water,'  Job  xxxvi.  27:  at  him,  when  they  behold  his 
greatness,  kings  will  open  their  mouth,  saying  that  what  had  not 
been  told  them  they  had  seen — for,  though  something  had  been 
told  them  of  Israel's  greatness,  yet  this  had  in  fact  not  been 
one-thousandth  part  of  what  they  now  beheld,  and  that  what 
they  had  not  heard  they  now  had  perceived.  Israel  themselves 
are   next  introduced   as  speaking :    Who,  they  ask,  was   there 


382  SHORT  PASSAGES. 

amongst  you  that  gave  credence  to  the  report  of  this  greatness 
which  we  proclaimed  in  your  ears  1  upon  whom,  except  upon  us, 
has  the  arm  of  the  Lord  been  revealed  ?  (Others  suppose  this 
verse  to  be  spoken  by  the  Gentiles  declaring  that  they  could 
not  believe  the  matter  upon  rejoort  only,  as  they  had  not  yet 
seen  it.)  He  came  xq),  wearing  the  appearance  of  a  shoot  out 
of  a  puny  and  blighted  tree,  without  either  form  or  comeliness, 
and  when  we  looked  at  him  there  was  no  beauty ;  how  then 
could  we  desire  him?  (The  last  clause  an  exclamation  of 
surprise ;  or,  perhaps,  it  may  be  rendered,  Yet  we  desire  him, 
viz.  now.)  For  he  was  despised  whilst  in  exile,  and  forlorn  of 
men,  a  man  of  pains  and  known  to  sickness — a  phrase  which 
cannot  be  used  except  of  one  who  has  had  ailments  for  a  series 
of  years,  and  hence  strictly  applicable  to  Israel,  whereas  the 
'  sickness '  experienced  by  Jesus  did  not  extend  beyond  the 
single  day  upon  which  he  was  put  to  death — and  as  he  passed 
along  the  roads  such  was  his  humiliation  and  shame  that  men 
hid  their  faces  from  him:  Ite  ivas  despised  and  we  esteemed  him 
not.  Therefore  the  sicknesses  and  pains  which  ought  to  have 
fallen  to  our  lot  were  borne  and  carried  by  him  instead:  yet  we 
thought  him  stricken,  smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted.  But  he  was 
wounded  for  our  transgressions — or,  as  Yonathan  renders,  was 
profaned,  referring  the  words  to  the  Sanctuary  which  is  at  pre- 
sent profaned  for  our  transgressions :  by  his  explanation  of 
*  poured  out  his  soul  to  die,'  viz.  rcfigned  his  soul  to  his  mui'- 
derers,  Yonathan  means,  however,  to  refer  to  the  Messiah,  who 
for  Israel's  sake  exposed  himself  to  the  perils  of  war,  but  never 
actually  died :  you  will  find  a  similar  expression  applied  to 
Zebulun,  Judg.  v.  1 8,  '  The  people  which  despised  their  soul 
unto  dying.'  Tloe  chastisement  of  the  whole  of  us,  the  suffer- 
ings which  should  have  been  ours,  came  upon  him — Dvt^,  from 
the  root  o7'^  to  be  whole,  is  used  as  in  Jer.  xiii.  19,  where  it  is 
equivalent  to  73 — and  by  his  stripes — the  stripes  (Exod.  xxi.  25) 
which  he  bore  when  '  stricken ' — we  are  liealed.  All  we  like  sheep 
went  astray,  were  in  error  upon  this  point :  tlie  Lord  had  laid 


SHORT   PASSAGES.  383 

on  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all,  whereas  we  thought  him  stricken 
of  God,  and  afflicted  [without  any  such  cause].  He  tvas  op- 
pressed, etc.,  and  ojMned  not  his  mouth:  but  how  can  tliis  apply- 
to  Jesus  ?  did  not  Jesus  cry  out,  '  My  God,  my  God,  wliy  liast 
thou  forsaken  me?'  [It  is  tnie  however  of  Israel;  and  Israel] 
also  was  in  exile  like  a  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter.  From  the 
coercion  of  captivity,  and  from  the  judgments  to  which  he  was 
there  liable,  he  tvas  taken,  and  released  by  God  into  'an  oj)en 
space;'  but  who  would  have  made  such  an  announcement  to  that 
generation,  while  he  was  cut  off  from  the  land  of  life,  i.  e.  from 
the  land  of  Israel?  for  the  transgression  of  my  people,  they  will 
every  one  be  saying,  the  stroke  was  upon  them,  viz.  when,  as 
the  prophet  said  before,  Israel  was  'wounded  for  our  tiiUis- 
gressions.'  And  he  made  his  grave  at  the  will  of  the  wicked, 
entrusted  his  death  to  the  hand  of  the  wicked  and  the  wealthy 
who  endeavoured  to  seduce  him  to  false  worships ;  he  would 
never,  however,  comply,  but  preferred  death,  for  he  did  no 
violence,  neither  tvas  there  guile  in  Jiis  mouth.  (Or  these  words 
may  mean  that  they  slew  him  tvithout  violence  or  guile,  i.  e. 
although  he  had  been  guilty  of  neither  one  nor  the  other.)  He 
shall  see  seed,  etc.  How  can  the  heretics  apply  these  words  to 
Jesus  1  '  seed '  is  a  term  w^hich  never  occurs  except  in  its  strict 
physical  sense ;  but  Jesus  had  no  seed,  nor  long  life. 

The  Parashah  succeeding  this,  'Shout,  O  barren,  thou  that 
hast  not  borne,'  etc.,  '  For  thy  Maker  is  tliy  husliand,'  '  He  hath 
called  thee  as  a  woman,  forsaken  and  gi'ieved  in  spirit,  and  a 
wafe  of  youth,  when  thou  wast  refused'  (liv.  i,  5,  6),  is  addressed 
to  Israel  (as  the  prophet  had  said  before,  1.  i,  'Where  is  the 
bill  of  your  mother's  divorcement  1 ') :  for  who  was  '  grieved  in 
spirit'  but  the  congregation  of  Israel  in  exile?  again  (liv.  7), 
'  For  a  small  moment  have  I  forsaken  thee ;  but  with  great 
mercies  will  I  gather  thee;'  but  who  was  there  scattered  that 
the  Lord  should  'gather'  her,  except  Israel?  again  (verses  8,  9), 

'  In  a  little  wrath  I  hid  my  fiice  from  thee,  etc :  I  have 

sworn  that  I  would  not  be  wroth  with  thee,  nor  rebuke  thee : ' 


384  SHORT    PASSAGES. 

but  with  whom  was  God  '  wroth '  so  often  as  with  Israel,  wlioni 
he  led  captives  to  Egypt,  to  Assyria,  to  Babylon  ? 

g.    R.  YosEPii  Albo. 

Sometimes,  too,  misfortunes  light  upon  the  righteous  not  as 
a  punishment,  but  for  the  sake  of  a  whole  nation,  that  atone- 
ment may  be  made  for  it.  This  is  because  the  Almighty  takes 
pleasure  in  the  preservation  of  the  world,  and  knows  that  the 
righteous  will  bear  his  sufferings  cheerfully,  without  quarrelling 
with  any  of  his  attributes :  he  therefore  brings  sufferings  upon 
the  just,  as  a  satisfaction  for  the  evil  [otherwise]  destined  to 
afflict  a  whole  people,  in  order  that  it  may  thus  be  averted  : 
this  is  what  our  Rabbis  mean  by  their  saying  f  '  The  death  of 
the  I'ighteous  worketh  atonement.'  We  find  the  Law  stated 
clearly  in  Scripture  :  God  says  to  Ezekiel  (iv.  4-6),  '  Lie  on  thy 
left  side ;  and  I  will  place  upon  it  the  iniquity  of  the  house  of 
Israel,  etc.^,  and  thou  shalt  bear  it:  and  when  thou  hast  finished 
these  things,  then  thou  shalt  lie  again  upon  thy  right  side,  and 
shalt  bear  the  iniquity  of  the  hous^  of  Judah.'  In  accordance 
with  the  same  principle,  the  statements  found  in  the  Parashah, 
Beliold  my  servant  shall  prosper,  are  all  to  be  referred  to  Israel 
(who  is  here  called  '  my  servant,'  as  Is.  xliv.  2,  xli.  8) :  when 
the  prophet  says,  Surely  he  carried  our  sichiesses,  etc. ;  but  tve 
tliovyht  Mm  stricken,  smitten  of  God,  o/nd  afflicted,  he  means  to 
say  that  when  men  see  sufferings  falling  upon  the  righteous, 
they  think  they  fall  upon  them  on  their  own  account,  and  are 
hence  naturally  surprised  :  it  is  not  so  in  fact,  however ;  they 
do  not  fall  upon  them  for  any  sin  they  may  have  committed, 
but  as  an  atonement  whether  for  all  the  world,  or  for  the  entire 
people,  or  for  some  single  city. 

'  Mo'ed  qaton,  28*. 


SHORT   PASSAGES.  385 

h.     R.  Israel  (Nagara?). 

"  High  and  exalted  and  k)fty  exceedingly  shall  be  my  servant ; 
yea,  he  shall  prosper :  |  my  servant,  the  '  branch,'  shall  cause  re- 
demption to  branch  forth  ;  he  shall  gather  the  flock  of  my  hand : 
I  and  upon  him  there  shall  rest  the  spirit  of  wisdom,  and  the 
splendour  of  my  majesty  1  |  The  coming  of  Shiloh  I  will  speed, 
that  those  who  wait  on  me  may  not  be  ashamed :  |  my  banner 
he  shall  set  up,  my  feet  he  shall  exalt,  in  order  that  every  sor- 
rowing heart  may  rejoice  ! 

The  gates  of  redemption  he  shall  quickly  open,  so  that  none 
may  shut :  |  the  sick  ones  that  wait  for  him,  which  are  come 
into  the  prison,  he  shall  redeem ;  |  the  sword  that  executeth 
the  vengeance  of  the  covenant  he  shall  then  gird  on. 

The  breath  of  his  lips  shall  slay  the  wicked,  and  hew  in  pieces 
the  oppressor :  |  justice  shall  be  the  girdle  of  his  loins,  as  he 
opens  hidden  places :  |  fi'om  the  four  corners  of  the  world  he 
shall  gather  unto  himself  the  sheep  which  are  cast  far  off. 

As  a  prince  he  shall  stand ;  yea,  as  an  ensign  of  the  peoples, 
whereunto  the  Gentiles  may  seek :  |  the  place  of  his  rest  also 
shall  be  glorious;  but  the  young  lions  shall  lack,  |  and  they 
which  make  their  boast  of  false  gods  shall  then  be  brought  to 
confusion. 

i.      K    EUYYAH   DE   ViDAS. 

It  is  said  in  the  Tana  cVhe  Eliyyahu,  during  the  thirteen  years 
for  which  R.  Shim'on  ben  Yohai  was  imprisoned  in  the  cave,  the 
depths  of  wisdom  were  x'evealed  to  him,  and  he  attained  know- 
ledge of  the  future.  In  particular,  he  learnt  how  the  man  that 
has  committed  iniquities  must  suffer  for  them,  and  is  not  worthy 
to  enter  the  celestial  light  (which  is  the  oil  of  which  David 
speaks  when  he  says,  Ps.  xxiii.  5,  '  Thou  makest  mine  head  fat 
with  oil ' ),  unless  he  first  bruise  and  crush  himself,  as  it  is  said 

s  The  first  letters  of  the  several  stanzas  in  the  original  form  the  acrostic 
Israel. 

c  c 


386  SHORT   PASSAGES. 

(Num.  xxviii.  5),  '  Mingled  with  cniiiJied  oil : '  and  this  is  that 
which  is  >vi'itten,  But  lie  was  wounded  for  our  transgressions, 
bruised  for  our  iniquities,  the  mcaniug  of  which  is  that  since 
the  Messiah  bears  our  iniquities  which  produce  the  effect  of  his 
being  bi'uised,  it  follows  that  whoso  will  not,  admit  that  the 
Messiah  thus  suffers  for  our  iniquities,  must  endure  and  suffer 
for  them  himself. 

It  is  related  in  Wayyiqra  Eabbd,  on  Lev.  vii.  1,  as  follows  : 
The  Almighty  said  to  Israel,  My  son,  I  am  he  Avho  once  declared 
to  you  that  I  had  no  pleasure  except  l^in  joyfulncss  and^i  in  the 
man  that  was  free  from  trespass  :  I  have  now  changed ;  and  I 
say  that  though  a  man  commit  countless  trespasses,  one  upon 
another,  yet  if  he  repents,  and  humbles  himself  to  the  ground, 
and  regards  himself  as  only  half  pure — the  other  half  of  him 
having  a  trespass-offering  hanging  in  suspense  over  it  conti- 
nually'—'-' lo,  then  I  am  with  him  in  mercy,'  and  will  accept  his 
repentance,  and  will  grant  him  sons  who  shall  be  diligent  in  the 
Law,  and  keep  the  words  of  my  commandments  in  their  mouth, 
as  it  is  written,  The  Lord  was  pleased  to  bruise  him ;  if  his 
soul  makes  a  trespass-offering,  he  shall  see  seed,  have  long 
life,  and  that  tohich  the  Lord  hath  pleasure  in  shall  jirosper  in 
his  hand, 

j.    R.  Hatyim  Ibn  Musa. 

He  states,  moreover,  that  there  are  some  of  the  Jews  who 
declare  that  the  Messiah  will  come  into  the  world  prostrate  and 
bowed  down  because  of  our  sins ;  and  that  this  is  clear  from 
the  verse,  But  we  thought  him  stricken,  smitten  of  God,  and 
afflicted.  Our  answer  is,  that  the  words  of  Nicolaus,  no  less  than 
those  of  the  Jew  whom  he  cites,  justify  no  such  inference ;  or, 
if  it  is  a  '  Midrash,'  then  there  is  no  obligation  to  reply  to  it  at 
all,  for  *  men  do  not  reply  to  an  allegorical  exposition  k ; '  and 

••  In  the  extract,  as  cited  p.  395,  these  words,  which  seem  in  this  connexion 
to  be  superfluous,  are  absent. 

'  Above,  p.  307.  ■'  Cf.  above,  p.  124. 


SHOUT  PASSAGES.  387 

I  myself  also  know  of  allegorical  expositors  among  the  Naza- 
rencs  whom  many  of  tlieir  teachers  utterly  repudiate ;  for  ex- 
ample, in  this  very  kingdom  the  allegorizings  of  Frai  VIncente 
Frere  have  been  in  many  quarters  repudiated,  although  he  had 
an  extraordinary  reputation  for  learning  and  piety. 

Nicolaus  further  asserts  that  his  death  is  described  by  Isaiah, 
in  the  words,  As  a  sheei)  led  to  death.  Isaiah,  however,  in 
reality  does  not  use  such  words ;  and  granting  that  another  has 
used  them,  still  who  can  lay  it  down  that  they  refer  to  Jesus  ? 
it  must  remain  doubtful  until  he  can  give  us  demonstration  of 
it.  In  truth,  we  believe  that  the  verse  refers  to  the  people  of 
Israel,  or  of  Judah,  who  are  spoken  of  as  God's  '  servant.' 

Objection  9.  From  what  Isaiah  says  of  the  Messiah  (who  is 
speedily  to  come  in  our  own  days  !),  He  shall  see  seed,  shall  have 
long  days,  the  Jews  urge,  he  alleges,  that,  as  Jesus  had  neither 
seed  nor  long  life,  he  could  not  be  the  Messiah.  They  urge  also, 
he  continues,  the  same  objection  from  the  words  of  the  eighty- 
ninth  Psalm  (verse  5),  *  I  will  establish  his  seed  for  ever : ' 
Jesus,  they  say,  had  no  seed ;  and  hence  could  not  be  the  Mes- 
siah. In  reply,  Nicolaus  points  out  that  Jesus  could  not  be 
expected  to  have  material  children,  but  only  spii-itual  ones,  for 
carnal  union  only  brings  with  it  folly ;  and  maintains  that  he 
can  derive  the  same  inference  from  the  verse,  '  In  Isaac  shall 
thy  seed  be  called,'  which  must  mean  that  his  seed  is  to  consist 
of  the  Apostolate.  But  to  this  we  rejoin,  that  the  word  used 
in  Scripture  with  reference  to  God  is  not  '  seed,'  but  '  sons ; '  if 
Jesus  then,  as  they  believe,  was  God,  how  could  it  be  said  that 
he  would  'see  seed?'  And  as  to  the  other  expression,  'have 
long  days,'  this  was  never  fulfilled  in  Jesus,  for  he  suffered  at 
half  the  age  usually  allotted  to  man.  Then  the  text,  If  his 
soul  shall  make,  etc.,  since  If  expresses  a  condition,  must  imply 
that  if  he  does  not  make  his  soul  a  trespass-offering,  he  will  not 
either  see  seed  or  have  long  life  :  but  language  such  as  this 
would  be  blasphemy  if  spoken  of  God,  though  not  if  spoken 
only  of  the  Messiah,     And,  thirdly,  how  can  the  expression, 

c  c  2 


388  SHORT    PASSAGES. 

'  Make  his  soul  a  trespass-offering,'  be  in  any  sense  applicable 
to  Godl  And  the  passage  adduced  from'Ps.  Ixxxix.  is  addressed 
by  the  Almighty  to  David  as  an  assurance  that  carnal — not 
spiritual — kings  will  issue  from  his  loins:  this  is  the  simple 
and  entire  trutli. 

k.       MiLHAMOTH  AdONAI. 

The  Nazarene  :  "We  have  now  an*ived  at  the  Parashah, 
Behold  my  servant  shall  prosper :  I  have  heard  what  you  have 
once  already  told  me  in  general  terms,  that  henceforward  all 
the  predictions  of  joy  and  prosjierity  in  this  book  refer  to 
delivery  either  from  the  captivity  of  Babylon,  or  from  that 
more  protracted  captivity  of  Edom  in  which  you  are  now 
living,  in  accordance  with  the  constant  mention  in  them  of 
Zion  and  Jerusalem.  You  also  told  me  generally  that  I  was 
a  'gleaner  amongst  the  sheaves,'  in  maintaining  that  an  indi- 
vidual verse  need  not  of  necessity  be  connected  with  what 
immediately  precedes  and  follows  it.  But  in  fact,  letter  by  let- 
ter, and  word  by  word,  this  Parashah,  from  beginning  to  end, 
refers  to  him  :  for  it  relates  how  he  fell  into  the  hand  of  his 
enemies,  and  suffered  himself  for  our  iniquities,  and  was  bviried 
between  the  wicked ;  how,  also,  he  was  wounded  for  the  trans- 
gression of  the  people,  and  we  are  healed  by  his  stripes,  and 
similarly  many  other  incidents  of  his  life  :  you  have  but  to 
read  it  in  order  to  see  that  it  speaks  plainly  of  him.  I  know 
also  that  your  own  great  teachers  unwittingly  bear  witness  to 
the  fact  that  the  subject  to  whom  it  refers  must  be  God,  when 
they  say,  '  He  shall  be  higher  than  Moses,  and  loftier  than  the 
angels : '  who,  indeed,  is  loftier  than  the  angels,  save  God 
alone  1 

The  Hebrew  :  This  too  I  will  wrest  from  your  bosom :  your 
opinion  of  the  Parashah  may  in  truth  be  refuted  on  ever  so 
many  grounds,  i.  The  prophet  calls  him  my  servant:  though 
it  is  certain  that  the  Godhead  could  not  so  address  one  who 
was  no  less  God  than  himself;    indeed,  even  the  Father  does 


SHORT   PASSAGES.  389 

not  call  his  Son  a  '  sei-vant ;'  for  '  servant '  as  compared  with 
'master'  implies  a  distinction  of  essence  which  does  not  sub- 
sist between  '  father '  and  '  son ' — the  less  so,  as  the  very  word 

*  son '  itself  (p)  is  derived  from  n:2  ('  to  build '),  and  so  denotes 
one  who  is  of  the  same  structure  with  his  father:  hence  the 
angels,  and  in  like  manner  righteous  men,  are  called  'sons'  in 
virtue  of  their  understanding.  But  the  condition  of  a  slave 
presupposes  diversity  of  essence,  though  there  may  be  an  acci- 
dental connexion  between  him  and  his  lord.  ^Xlien,  however, 
the  righteous  are  styled  '  servants,'  it  is  from  a  consideration  of 
the  commands — or  prohibitions — imposed  on  them  by  the 
Almighty:  and  thus  we  may  find  the  same  person  called  a 
'son'  in  respect  of  his  understanding,  and  a  'servant'  in  re- 
spect of  his  svibordination  to  Grod :  thus,  in  the  passage  (Mai. 
i.  6),  '  If  I  am  a  father,  where  is  my  honour  1  and  if  a  lord, 
where  is  the  fear  of  me?'  the  'honour'  is  that  Avhich  is  owing 
peculiarly  fi'om  a  son,  the  *  fear '  is  that  which  is  owing  from  a 
servant.  2.  He  is  called  a  'man  of  pains  and  hioion  of  sick- 
ness : '  but  such  an  expression  is  not  used  except  of  one  who  is 
habitually  ailing  ;  and  such  was  not  the  case  with  Jesus.  3.  He 
is  said  to  be  'despised  and  forlorn  of  men,  without  form  or 
comeliness : '  but  Jesus  was  handsome  in  person :  was  he  not 
one  of  the  seed  royal,  who  assuredly  were  all  'goodly  in  form 
and  well-favoured  V  Nor  can  the  description  allude  to  the  time 
of  his  death,  for,  since  men  marvelled  at  his  elevation  (lii.  13), 
the  exj>ressions  must  denote  one  who  before  had  been  con- 
stantly so  circumstanced.  4.  Isaiah  says,  'For  the  trans- 
gi-ession  of  my  people  was  there  a  stroke  upon  them'' — in  the 
plural ;  but  [had  he  meant  to  indicate  Jesus]  he  ought  to  have 
said  '  upon  liim  : '  we  certainly  find  )u?  used  occasionally  as  a 
singular,  as  Ps.  xi.  7,  but  only  as  an  anomaly.  5.  He  says, 
'  He  made  his  grave,'  etc. ;  but  he  ought  rather  to  have  said, 

*  they  made,'  since  the  allusion  must  be  to  Israel  who  buried 
him  among  the  wicked.  Or  if  you  suppose  that  Jesus  himself 
is  the  subject  of  the  verb,  did  not  the  action  in  question  take 


390  SHORT   PASSAGES. 

place  after  bis  death,  when  the  body,  wc  know,  is  devoid  of  all 
power  of  sensation  ?  6.  He  says  of  him  that  he  shall  '  see  seed;' 
but  you  will  nowhere  find  the  term  '  seed '  used  except  of  that 
which  is  bom  physically.  7.  He  says  similarly,  *  He  shall 
lengthen  days  ; '  l)ut  this  is  a  phrase  Avhich,  according  to  its 
natural  meaning,  would  denote  some  period  which  is  termin- 
able. For  although  our  Rabbis  1  expound  the  words,  '  Thou 
shalt  have  long  days'  (Deut.  xxii.  7)  as  signifying  infinite  dura- 
tion, this  is  an  allegorical  exposition,  which  however  they  ai'c 
compelled  to  adopt,  because  the  time  mentioned  has  a  begin- 
ning assigned  to  it ;  but  time  without  cither  beginning  or  end 
cannot  be  denoted  by  the  phrase  '  length  of  days.'  And  if  you 
reply  that  the  woi'ds  refer  to  his  manhood,  then  this  never  had 
'long  days'  at  all.  7.  The  expression  'cut  off  from  the  land 
of  life'  is  an  unsiiitable  one  to  be  employed  of  God. — More- 
over, I  can  assure  you  generally  that  with  resj^ect  to  Messiah 
son  of  David,  the  Scriptures  affirm  consistently  that  he  will  be 
neither  slain  nor  delivered  into  the  hands  of  his  haters :  in  fact, 
this  is  only  said  of  Messiah  son  of  Joseph,  for  reasons  which 
we  have  already  explained  on  the  section  Ileleq.  You  should 
also  bear  generally  in  mind  that  upon  the  man  appointed  to  be 
the  true  Messiah  signs  and  tokens  will  converge  such  as  have 
never  yet  been  manifested  on  any  of  those  who  have  claimed  to 
be  the  Messiah  themselves :  this  was  clearly  shewn  in  tlie  case 
of  Bar  Koziba,  whom  men  quickly  found  to  be  no  arbiter  or 
judge  ™.  One  of  these  signs  characteristic  of  the  Messiah  is  to 
be,  as  you  know,  the  acquisition  of  vast  dominions,  as  it  is 
written,  'His  dominion  shall  be  from  sea  to  sea'  (Zech.  ix.  10), 
and  similarly,  'And  to  another  people  his  kingdom  shall  not 
be  left'  (Dan.  ii.  44) :  this,  however,  has  never  been  fulfilled  in 
him,  or  indeed  in  any  one  else,  but  least  of  all  in  Jesus,  who 
never  had  any  dominion  whatever.  And  even  the  Romans, 
whose  sway  extended  over  the  greater  part  of  the  Avorld,  when 

'   QiihlusJiiu,  f,y''.  '"  Savfu'diin,  fj.V- 


SHOKT    PASSAGES.  391 

in  course  of  time  they  embraced  Hs  faith,  were  reduced,  and  lost 
much  of  their  power.  Many  other  facts  pointing  in  the  same 
direction  have  been  set  forth  in  a  previous  part  of  this  ti'eatise : 
only  remember  that  in  truth  the  Parashah  refers  throughout 
to  Israel  and  the  Messiah,  Avho  will  meet  with  extraordinary 
prosperity,  so  that  all  the  nations  who  have  before  been  only 
acquainted  with  our  humiliation  will  be  astonished  both  at  him 
and  at  us.  The  entire  explanation  you  will  find  stated  with 
ampler  details  in  our  Commentary  on  Isaiah :  as,  in  fact,  we 
have  shewn,  the  argument  which  you  adduced  from  the  saying 
of  the  Rabbis,  'loftier  than  the  angels,'  possesses  no  cogency 
whatever. 

I 

?'•3^'^  i.  e.  will  jprosper.  nnt^K,  because  his  countenance  and 
form  were  marred  beyond  those  of  other  men.  1V2pS  like  the 
verse  (Job  xxix.  9),  '  Princes  withheld  words,  and  laid  their 
hand  upon  their  mouth.'  pJV,  a  hough :  as  though  to  say  that 
Israel  came  up  formerly  before  the  Lord,  and  hence  resembled 
a  bough  or  root  in  arid  soil,  which  does  not  grow  large,   imcrui, 

K.  H n;  'he  had  no  beauty  that  we  might  desire  it.'   inDD3 

D''J3,  'Ibn  Janah  :  '  if  he  had  but  for  a  short  time  hidden  his 
face  from  him,  he  would  have  been  destroyed.'  pN — i.  e.  p  DN — 
if  it  was  so,  then,  the  sicknesses  which  we  laid  upon  him  he 
carried,  and  the  pains  which  we  occasioned  to  him  he  hare.  We 
thought  him,  etc.,  i.  e.  as  we  plagued  him,  we  imagined  in  our 
hearts  that  God  had  bidden  us  so  to  smite  and  afflict  him.  He 
was  tvounded  for  our  iniquities,  i.  e.  as  we  smote  him,  it  seemed 
to  us  as  though  the  Almighty  had  commanded  us  to  do  so; 
but  now  the  same  nations  admit  that  '  he  was  wounded  for  our 
transgressions;  in  wreaking  our  vengeance  upon  him  we  were 
transgressing  against  him  in  his  sickness,  and  in  bruising  him 
we  were  acting  wickedly  towards  liim.'    'Ibn  Janah  explains  th& 

°  The  initial  letter  of  this  Rabbi's  name  (which  is  all  that  the  Hebrew  text 
offers)  is  not  enough  to  enable  him  to  be  identified:  similarly  below, 'Z.  A.  B.' 


392  SHORT   PASSAGES. 

words  thus  :  We  tliought  that  God  liad  smitten  and  corrected 
him;  but  it  was  not  so  :  his  sicknesses  and  pains  were  the  effects 
of  our  transgressing  against  him.  IJ^DvC  "iDID,  i.  e»  tlie  correc- 
tion or  reproofs  of  the  wJiole  of  us  were  tipon  him,  and  by 
smitin(f  him «  toe  are  healed,  i.  e.  he  was  smitten  in  our  stead ; 
DvC  denotes  here  the  whole,  as  in  Jer.  xiii.  19.  E.  Isaiah  Mali, 
however  p,  interprets  the  words  to  mean  '  our  peace  Avas  removed 
from  off  liini ' — we  did  not  even  allow  him  to  have  peace.  ''"'1 
12 yjan,  i.e.  the  Lord  made  him  a  'stumbling-block  and  an 
offence  before  us.'  'i)  "i^'JJfD,  the  meaning  must  be  that  when  he 
was  led  to  the  slaughter,  he  was  taken  thither  from  prison  and 
torture,  i.  e.  he  was  first  tortured,  and  then  led  off  to  execution 
(Z.  A.  B.)  1"in  riNI,  and  his  generation,  who  can  declare  how 
it  fared  1  (Z.  A.  B.)  For  the  transgression  of  my  i^^^P^^ — o^j 
as  others  prefer,  of  his  people — which  was  actually — or,  at 
least,  was  destined  to  be — a  blow  to  them  (Z.  A.  B.)  And  lie 
made  Ms  grave  with  the  wicked,  i.  e.  according  to  'Ibn  Janah,  as 
cited  by  Qamhi  q,  he  died  before  his  time  through  their  slaying 
him;  and  this,  although  he  had  done  no  violence  with  his  hands^, 
like  the  wicked  who  die  before  their  time,  or  are  put  to  death 
for  their  wickedness.  VHID,  the  pkiral  of  HID,  for  they  were 
often  put  to  death  after  being  pierced  through  and  through,  or 
after  having  suffered  cruel  tortures  (Z.  A.  B.)  '31  7?3j;o  (as 
the  meaning  seems  to  me  to  be),  for  the  travail  entailed  by  the 
troubles  he  endui'ed,  lie  shall  he  satisfied  ;  notwithstanding  this, 
however,  my  servant  still  justified  the  just,  and  did  not,  for  what 
he  had  suffered,  condemn  him,  but  judged  righteously  in  spite 
of  all  that  he  endured  in  bearing  their  iniquities,  and  so  re- 
ceived the  promise.  Therefore  I  will  divide  him  a  ^portion,  etc. 
(Z.  A.  B.) 


°  Comp.  pp.  62,  373.  P  P.  76. 

'I  Perhaps  Yoscph  Qatnlii :  this  opinion  of 'Ibn  Janah  is  not  known  from 
any  otlior  source. 

'■  The  author  is  thinking  of  the  parallel  passage,  Job  xvi.  1 7. 


SHORT   PASSAGES.  393 


LII.  "  So  will  he  now  prevail  and  scatter  many  nations, 
driving  them  from  their  land,  like  a  man  sprinkling  water, 
when  no  one  drop  touches  another  (R.  I[saiah  Mali^]).  Israel 
came  up  like  a  sucker  which  at  first  is  scarcely  perceived,  but 
after  a  short  time  appears  as  a  great  tree  :  in  the  same  way 
Israel  were  formerly  depressed  in  their  exile,  but  are  now  ex- 
alted over  all :  and  like  a  root  planted  in  the  dry  earth  which 
men  think  to  be  hopelessly  withered,  but  which  at  last  shoots 
up,  and  produces  a  rich  growth  of  foliage.  Also  Israel  had  at 
fii'st  no  form  or  comeliness,  and  ivhen  we  looked  at  him,  there 
was  no  beauty  that  ive  might  desire  it,  or  exclaim.  How  beau- 
tiful the  features  of  this  Jew  !  (R.  I[saiah  Mali]),  "-^in  yn% 
according  to  some,  'broken  of  sickness,'  as  Judg.  viii.  i6.  Hn 
D^t^''X,  since  the  prophet  represents  Israel  as  a  single  man,  he 
speaks  of  him  here  as  ceasing  from  men,  i.  e.  as  ceasing  on 
account  of  his  humiliation  to  be  classed  amongst  other  men 
(R.  'Immanu'el).  But  he  carried  the  sicknesses  and  ^Ja^?^s  which 
we  occasioned  to  him  :  and  for  this  reason  he  had  no  beauty : 
yet  we  thought  him  stricken,  smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted — 
imagined  that  it  had  been  God's  will  that  we  should  afflict  him. 
£ut  he  tvas  wounded  for  our  transgressions, — for  when  we 
wounded  him,  it  was  imputed  to  us  as  a  great  transgression 
by  the  Creator,  and  bruised  for  our  iniquities,  for  similarly, 
when  we  bruised  him,  it  was  counted  to  us  as  an  '  iniquity  for 
the  judge : '  our  peace  was  removed  from  him,  for  we  did  not 
allow  him  even  to  enjoy  peace;  and  by  his  stripes  we  were 
healed,  for  as  we  inflicted  upon  him  injury  and  wounds,  we  so 
rejoiced  at  his  misfortunes  that  we  seemed  to  be  healed  oui'- 
selves. 

s  So  the  abbreviation  must  probably  be  interpreted ;  at  any  rate,  both  the 
explanations  cited  occur  almost  verbatim  in  the  commentary  of  Isaiah  Mali : 
see  pp.  74,  75. 


394  SHORT    PASSAGES. 

n.     Sepher  Hasidim. 

Every  one  who  is  despised  by  tlie  world,  provided  only  it 
be  not  for  deeds  of  wickedness,  will  be  exalted  in  the  future, 
as  it  is  written,  Behold  my  servant  shall  prosper :  he  shall  be 
high  and  exalted  and  lofty  exceedingly.  Who  is  signified  here  1 
Tlie  fame  of  whom  it  is  written  in  tlic  text  below,  '  He  was  the 
despissd  and  forlorn  of  men.' 

0.      MiDRASH    KONEN. 

The  fifth  mansion  in  Paradise  is  built  of  onyx  and  jasper, 
and  set  stones,  and  silver  and  gold,  and  fine  gold,  surrounded 
by  rivers  of  balsam  :  before  the  entrance  flows  the  Gihon ;  a 
pavilion  (?)  is  there  of 'all  trees  of  frankincense' (Cant.  iv.  14),  with 
sweet  odours,  and  beds  of  gold  and  silver,  and  richly-variegated 
garments:  there  dwell  Messiah  son  of  David,  and  Elijah,  and  Mes- 
siah son  of  Ephraim ;  there  also  is  the  '  litter  of  the  wood  of 
Lebanon'  {ih.  iii.  9),  like  the  tabernacle  which  Moses  made  in 
the  wilderness ;  all  the  furniture  thereof  and  '  the  pillars  thereof 
of  silver,  the  bottom  of  gold,  the  seat  of  purple,'  and  within  it, 
Messiah  son  of  David  who  loveth  Jerusalem.  Elijah  takes  him 
by  his  head,  lays  him  down  in  his  bosom,  holds  him,  and  says, 
'  Bear  thou  the  sufferings  and  wounds  wherewith  the  Almighty 
doth  chastise  thee  for  Israel's  sin ;'  and  so  it  is  written.  He  was 
ivounded  for  our  transgressions,  hruised  for  our  iniquities,  until 
the  time  when  the  end  should  come. 

p.      'ASERETH   MeMROTH. 

The  Messiah,  in  order  to  atone  for  them  both  [for  Adam  and 
David],  will  make  his  soul  a  trespass-offering,  as  it  is  written 
next  to  this,  in  the  Parashah  Behold  my  servant :  DtJ'N,  i.  e.  cab- 

balistically  \  Menahem  son  of  Ammiel.     And  what  is  written 

\ • 

'Lit.  hy  geometry,  thus:  bn-'OV  ]2  Dn2Q  =  40  + 50  + 8  +  40  +  2  +  50  + 
70  +  40+  10+  I  +  30=341  ;   DffiN=i  +300  +  40  =  341. 


SHORT   PASSAGES.  395 

after  rfc  ]    ITe  shall  see  seed,  shall  have  long  days,  and  the  pleas^ire 
of  tJte  Lord  shall  jyrosper  in  his  liand. 

q.     Sepher  ha-gilgaxim. 

You  must  know  also  tliat  the  soul  of  celestial  splendour  no 
created  being  in  the  world  has  ever  yet  been  worthy  to  obtain : 
the  King  Messiah,  however,  will  receive  it :  it  is  accordingly 
said  of  him,  He  shall  he  high  and  exalted,  etc.,  or,  as  our  Rab- 
bis say,  'He  shall  be  higher  than  Abraham,  exceedingly  above 
Adam  !' 

r.     Yalqut  R'ubheni. 

Said  the  old  R.  Hijr^'^a  :  We  have  found  no  shepherd  ready 
to  sacrifice  himself  for  his  flock,  except  Moses,  who  said  (Exod. 
xxxii.  32),  'And  now,  if  thou  wilt  forgive  their  sin — and  if  not, 
blot  me,  I  pray  thee  : '  blot  me  out  whence  ?  from  this  world, 
and  also  from  that  which  is  to  come,  in  order  that  the  words 
might  be  fulfilled,  Because  he  poured  out  his  soul  to  die. 

This  is  the  law  of  the  trespass-offering  (Lev.  vii.  i).  The  Holy 
One  spake  thus  unto  Israel :  My  sons,  I  said  unto  you,  I  have 
no  pleasure  save  in  the  man  in  whom  is  no  transgression ;  but 
my  words  I  have  changed :  though  a  man  commit  a  hundred 
transgressions  one  after  another,  yet,  if  he  turn,  and  repent, 
and  humble  himself  to  the  earth,  and  look  upon  one  half  of 
himself  as  guilty,  and  the  other  half  as  innocent,  and  consider 
the  'suspended  trespass-offering'  to  be  continually  due  from 
him,  lo,  '  I  am  with  him  in  mercy,'  and  will  accept  his  repent- 
ance, and  grant  him  children  of  the  Law — children  diligent 
in  the  study  and  performance  of  it^ — and  the  words  of  the 
Law  I  will  put  for  ever  in  his  mouth,  as  it  is  wi'itten,  TJie  Lord 
was  phased  to  bruise  him^.  Says  the  Almighty  to  Israel,  My 
son,  think  not  of  me  as  of  this  sand,  which  belongs  neither  to 

"  Above,  p.  386. 


396  SHOUT   PASSAGES. 

the  living  nor  to  the  dead ;  but  let  a  man  humble  himself,  and 
then,  if  lie  puts  his  soul  in  his  hand,  and  (as  it  is  said,  Lev.  vi.  6, 
'  brings  a  trespass-offering ')  offers  atonement  for  himself,  assur- 
edly he  shall  see  seed  and  prolong  his  days,  i.  e. — according  to 
one  explanation  of  the  words — 'see  seed'  in  this  world,  and 
'  prolong  his  days '  in  the  world  to  come. 

Who  is  it  that  carried  our  sicknesses  and  bare  our  pains? 
Man  himself,  who  first  brought  death  into  the  world.  Now  learn 
what  is  secret  from  that  which  is  revealed  :  Because  he  carried 
our  sicknesses — for  man  himself  by  the  rotation  [of  souls  v]  is 
Adam,  David,  and  the  Messiah — therefore  he  suffered  in  order 
to  atone  for  the  sin  of  our  first  parent  who  brought  death  into 
the  world. 


s.     Yalqut  Hadashx. 

The  souls  of  the  righteous  wander  to  and  fro  in  the  world; 
and  when  they  see  amongst  the  sons  of  men  those  wdio  are 
crushed  by  the  sufferings  undergone  by  them  for  the  honour 
of  God,  and  when  they  see  also  those  wricked  members  of  the 
generation  who  are  the  cause  of  the  exile  being  prolonged,  they 
come  and  announce  it  to  the  Messiah.  Forthwith  the  Messiah 
proceeds  into  one  of  the  palaces  in  Paradise  called  the  Palace 
of  the  children  of  sickness ;  he  enters  thither  and  invites  all 
the  pains  and  sufferings  of  Israel  to  come  and  rest  upon  him. 
And  did  he  not  in  this  way  lighten  them  off  Israel,  there 
would  be  no  man  in  the  whole  w^orld  able  to  bear  the  penalties 
incurred  for  transgression  of  the  Law ;  while  Israel  were  in 
their  own  land  they  freed  themselves  from  such  sicknesses  and 
other  punishments  by  means  of  offerings,  but  now  the  Messiah 
frees  them  from  them,  as  it  is  written,  He  ivas  tvounded  for  our 
transgressions. 


"  I.e.  in  accordance  with  the  doctrine  of  transmigration. 
*  Comp.  p.  14. 


SHOliT    PASSAGES,  397 


The  heretics  explain  this  Parashah  of  Jesus.  You  may  ask 
them,  however,  why  he  should  be  called  a  'servant,'  having 
no  master?  and  if  they  reply  that  the  Son  is  subject  to  the 
Father,  then  there  are  two  distinct  persons  [in  the  Godhead], 
whereas  they  declare  themselves  that  the  whole  is  one.  Or,  if  it 
be  thought  that  he  is  called  'servant,'  because  he  submitted 
himself  to  the  will  of  his  Godhead,  why  should  men  own  the 
servant  as  lord  and  God?  is  it  not  better  to  sen^e  God,  the 
lord  of  all,  than  to  serve  the  menial  of  a  king  1  Again,  the 
text  says  that  he  was  smitten  and  afflicted  of  God  ;  but  he  did 
not  'afflict  him  willingly'  (Lam.  iii.  33),  for  the  Jews  crucified 
him  after  the  condemnation  of  Pilate.  Again,  it  says.  The  Lord 
was  pleased  to  bruise  him,  and  yet  they  throw  the  guilt  of  his 
crucifixion  upon  us  :  but  if  God  in  his  wisdom  was  pleased 
through  him  to  accomplish  the  restoration  of  his  world,  why 
should  men  be  punished  for  fulfilling  his  purpose  ?  The  text 
says  also,  The  Lord  laid  upon  him  the  iniquity  of  tis  all ;  but 
we  Israelites  are  not  saved  by  him  at  all,  nor  are  even  those  who 
believe  that  he  came  to  save  men  from  Gehenna,  and  to  repair 
the  consequences  of  Adam's  sin  on  Isaac,  Jacob,  and  Moses  our 
master  (with  whom  God  spake  mouth  to  mouth,  and  of  whom 
he  took  special  charge  at  the  time  of  his  burial) ;  the  righteous 
and  the  foolish  all  die  alike,  and  the  just  and  the  wicked  are 
brought  down  to  the  Underworld  together.  This,  however, 
reason  can  certainly  not  determine,  nor  intelligence  endure ; 
since,  as  it  is  said, '  AVho  is  the  man  that  feareth  the  Lord  ?  . .  .  . 
his  soul  shall  rest  at  ease,'  etc.  (Ps.  xxv.  12  f.);  and  similarly 
in  the  assurance  addressed  by  the  Almighty  to  Moses,  '  Behold 
thou  shalt  lie  with  thy  fathers '  (Deut.  xxxi.  1 6)  :  but  what  an 
assurance  to  give  him,  that  he  should  rest  with  them  in  Ge- 
henna !  Men  are  sinful  and  disobedient  now  exactly  as  they 
were  before  he  came  :  those  who  do  evil  go  down  into  hell,  and 
those  who  do  good  inherit  Paradise  (as,  in  fact,  they  assert  them- 


398  SHOUT   PASSAGES. 

selves) ;  yet  if  Jesus  came  for  tlic  i)urposc  of  repairing  Adam's 
sin,  then  be  ought  to  have  repaired  it  entirely,  and  rescued  men 
from  all  its  consequences — destroying  the  enmity  of  the  ser- 
pent, and  the  pain  of  childbearing,  the  toil  necessary  to  'eat 
bread,'  the  growth  of  '  thorns  and  thistles,'  and  all  the  murder 
and  warfare  Avhich  flow  from  the  serpent's  venom.  But,  in  fact, 
everything  attests  that  his  coming  has  been  a  source  of  neither 
advantage  nor  detriment :  how  still  does  the  curse  pronounced 
when  Cain  slew  his  brother  Abel  ever  grow  in  severity !  And 
as  to  the  words  in  ver.  i  o,  which  denote  a  condition  that  '  if  his 
soul  makes  a  trespass-offering,  he  will  see  seed,'  etc.,  where  are 
the  sons  of  Jesus  ?  besides,  if  he  be  God,  it  is  quite  clear  that 
Buch  an  expression  as  is  here  used  cannot  be  applied  to  him. 

By  his  slri'iies  we  were  healed  :  yet  how  many  of  his  disciples 
were  prostrated  by  sickness  !  most  of  them,  too,  were  crucified, 
or  in  other  ways  put  to  death,  without  the  '  stripes '  endured  by 
Jesus  making  any  manner  of  ransom  for  them.  The  truth 
is,  that  the  Parashah  relates  throughout  to  any  just  man  who 
is  a  '  servant  of  the  Lord,'  and  who  is  ready  for  love  of  him  to 
sacrifice  his  life  by  suffering  martyrdom  in  his  service. 

u. 
Flee,  my  beloved,  until  the  end  of  the  vision  shall  speak  y ;  | 
hasten,  and  the  shadows  shall  take  their  flight  hence  :  |  high 
and  exalted  and  lofty  shall  be  the  despised  one ;  |  he  shall  be 
prudent  in  judgment,  and  shall  sprinkle  many  !  |  Lay  bare  thine 
arm !  cry  out,  and  say :  |  '  The  voice  of  my  beloved ;  behold 
he  Cometh  z  !' 

V.    Buch  der  Verzeichnung. 
The  fifty-third  chapter  they  call  the  golden  chapter,  and  say 
that  it  refers  to  their  Messiah  ;  we,  on  the  contrary,  can  pi'ove 

^  Or,  come  speedily;  see  Ilab.  ii.  3.     Comp.  also  Cant.  viii.  14,  ii.  17. 
^  Comp.  Caut.  ii.  8.     The  lines  give  the  acrostic,  pm  "na. 


SHORT    PASSAGES.  399 

clearly  that  it  refers  to  Israel ;  indeed,  we  see  daily  everything 
happening  to  them  as  is  here  described :  besides,  chapters  fifty- 
two  and  fifty-four  cannot  relate  to  their  Messiah.  They  say 
that  their  Messiah  is  Grod,  whilst  this  Parashah  begins  '  My  ser- 
vant shall  act  prudently;'  but  a  servant  cannot  be  God  :  Moses, 
again,  is  called  the  'servant  of  God,'  and  Scripture  says  that 
'  none  arose  like  him.'  They  say,  further,  that  he  gave  himself 
ixp  willingly  as  a  sacrifice  for  their  sins,  whereas  in  St.  John's 
Gospel  (viii.  59),  when  they  threw  stones  at  him,  it  is  recorded 
that  he  Avent  out  of  the  way.  At  the  end  of  the  chapter  it  is 
written,  He  shall  see  seed  and  prolong  his  days ;  but  how  can 
God  have  '  seed,'  and  how  long  was  his  life  ?  Much  more  might 
be  adduced  in  order  to  shew  that  the  Christians  cannot  go  far 
with  their  arguments ;  but  I  prefer  not  to  waste  time  by  pro- 
tracting the  discussion  fui'ther. 

w. 

We  are  shrunk  up  in  our  misery  even  until  now  !  our  rock 
hath  not  come  nigh  to  us :  Messiah,  our  righteousness,  hath 
turned  from  us  :  we  are  in  terror,  and  there  is  none  to  justify  us ! 
Our  iniquities  and  the  yoke  of  our  transgressions  he  will  bear, 
for  lie  loas  wounded  for  our  transgressions  :  he  will  carry  our 
sins  upon  his  shoulder,  that  we  may  find  forgiveness  for  our 
iniquities,  and  bi/  his  stripes  we  are  healed.  O  eternal  One,  the 
time  is  come  to  make  a  new  creation  :  from  the  vault  df  heaven 
bring  him  up,  out  of  Seir  draw  him  forth,  that  he  may  make 
his  voice  heard  to  us  in  Lebanon,  a  second  time  by  the  hand 
of  Yinnon  '^ ! 

»  One  of  the  Rabbinical  names  of  the  Messiah,  derived  from  Ps.  Ixxii.  17  : 
comp.  above,  p.  7  ;  Pusey,  Lectures  on  Daniel,  p.  481  (cd.  1864). 


XLVIII.     HERZ   HOMBERG. 

This  prophecy  is  disconnected  with  what  precedes  it.  Accord- 
ing to  the  ojjinion  of  Rashi  and  'Ibn  'Ezra,  it  reUites  to  Israel 
at  the  end  of  their  captivity ;  the  term  '  servant '  and  the  use 
of  the  singular  number  referring  to  the  individual  members  of 
the  nation.  But  if  so,  wliat  can  be  the  meaning  of  the  passage, 
'  He  was  wounded  for  our  transgressions,'  etc.  ?  Who  was 
'wounded]'  who  are  the  'transgressors?'  Who  'carried'  the 
sickness  and  '  bare '  the  pains  1  And  where  are  the  sick  1  are 
they  not  the  same  as  those  who  are  '  smitten  '  and  who  '  bear  V 
And  if  '  each  turned  to  his  own  way,'  upon  Avhom  did  '  the 
Lord  lay  the  iniquity  of  them  all"?'  The  Ga'on,  E,.  Sa'adyah, 
explains  the  whole  Parashah  of  Jeremiah  :  and  there  are  indeed 
numerous  parts  of  Scripture  in  which  we  can  trace  a  great  re- 
semblance to  what  befel  Jeremiah  while  persecuted  by  the  false 
prophets.  But  the  commencement  of  the  prophecy, '  He  shall  be 
high  and  exalted  and  lofty  exceedingly,'  and  similarly  the  words 
'  with  the  mighty  he  shall  divide  spoil/  will  not  admit  of  being 
applied  to  him.  The  fact  is,  that  it  refers  to  the  King  Messiah, 
who  will  come  in  the  latter  days,  when  it  will  be  the  Lord's 
good  pleasure  to  redeem  Israel  from  among  the  different  nations 
of  the  earth.  When  he  first  manifests  himself  those  who  see 
him  will  marvel  at  him,  asking,  Who  is  this  man  without  form 
or  comeliness,  that  durst  presume  in  his  heart  to  bid  all  the 
kings  of  the  earth  set  Israel  free  ?  In  one  country,  people 
will  revile  and  despise  him,  keeping  in  the  distance  and  hiding 


Hi,  liii.]  iiEBZ  HOMBERa.  401 

their  faces  from  him  :  in  another,  they  will  smite  and  buffet 
him  till  he  is  covered  with  bruises  and  stripes,  and  exhausted 
with  pains  ;  and  if  he  betakes  himself  elsewhere,  they  will  there 
attack  him  in  order  to  slay  him  without  justice  or  right,  and 
to  cast  him  forth  into  the  grave  of  a  criminal.  And  even  the 
Israelites  themselves  will  only  regard  him  as  'one  of  the  vain  fel- 
lows,' believing  none  of  the  announcements  which  will  be  made 
by  him  in  God's  name,  but  being  contumacious  against  him, 
and  averring  that  all  the  reproaches  and  persecutions  which  fall 
to  his  lot  are  sent  upon  him  from  heaven,  for  that  he  is  '  smit- 
ten of  God '  for  his  own  sin.  For  they  will  not  at  first  perceive 
that  whatever  he  underwent  was  in  consequence  of  their  own 
transgx'ession,  the  Lord  having  chosen  him  to  be  a  trespass- 
offering,  like  the  scape-goat  which  bore  all  the  iniquities  of  the 
house  of  Israel.  Being,  however,  himself  well  aware  that 
through  his  pains  and  revilings  the  promised  redemption  will 
eventually  come  at  the  appointed  time,  he  will  endure  all  with 
a  willing  soul,  neither  complaining  nor  opening  his  mouth  'in 
the  siege  and  distress  where\vith  the  enemies  of  Israel  will  op- 
press him'  (as  is  pointed  out  from  the  passage  here  in  the  Hag- 
gadah).  And  then,  when  the  '  waters  of  indignation  reach  eveu 
to  the  neck,'  the  arm  of  the  Lord  will  be  revealed  upon  him  to 
deliver  him  out  of  all  his  troubles ;  he  will  not  give  him 
over  to  die  like  a  transgi'essor,  but  he  will  raise  him  on  high, 
and  exalt  him  exceedingly,  and  the  Loi'd's  pleasure  shall  pros- 
per in  his  hand.  And  because  he  shewed  himself  ready  to 
meet  death  for  the  sake  of  the  many,  or,  in  other  w'ords,  for  the 
general  advantage,  he  will  make  him  head  over  the  many — i.  e. 
over  the  children  of  Israel  now  in  dispersion,  and  the  kings  of  the 
earth  will  be  astonished  at  him,  because,  though  seeming  to  them 
at  first  to  be  despised  and  forlorn  of  men,  he  will  then  become 
as  one  of  themselves,  even  '  dividing  spoil  with  the  mighty.' 
Perhaps  upon  this  prophecy  is  based  the  opinion  of  Sh'mu'el  '^, 

»  Sanhedrin,  99"'. 
Dd 


402  HEBZ    HOMBERG.  [Hi.  13- 

who  said  that  the  only  difference  between  the  present  world  and 
the  days  of  the  Messiah  was  in  the  submission  of  the  kingdoms, 
which  would  then  be  consummated. 

LII.  ^^  b''yC'^,  shall  prosper.  "  lOOK',  tvere  astonisJied  :  all 
the  past  tenses  in  this  Parashah  must  be  understood  as  futures ; 
the  prophet  in  his  vision  sees  the  events  as  though  they  were 
already  accomplished.  p,  rightly — a  word  serving  to  cor- 
roborate a  statement.  rinC'jPj  for  rinti'D,  marred  or  spoilt. 
^^  nt',  according  to  the  Targum,  to  scatter ;  and  so  also 
Rashi,  for  in  spnnkling,  a  man  scatters  the  blood  which  has 
previously  been  massed  together  into  innumerable  drops. 
1!»'Dp%  will  shut,  as  Deut.  xv.  7 :  in  Qamhi's  words,  '  Their 
astonishment  will  be  such  that  they  will  lay  their  hand  upon 
their  mouth ;'  there  is,  however,  no  occasion  to  suppose  this, 
for.  when  a  man  is  greatly  amazed,  his  lips  are  shut  and  he  is 
unable  to  speak. 

LIII.  ^  This  verse  is  parenthetical,  the  prophet  remarking 
that  the  kings  will  rightly  be  amazed ;  for  who  that  heard  our 
words  could  fail  to  believe  them  !  Upon  whom  was  it  revealed, 
save  upon  him  1  ^  p3V,  a  small  and  weakly  plant  which  clings 
to  the  earth,  as  a  sucking  child  to  its  mother's  bi'east.  inN^Jl, 
there  will  be  nothing  in  his  countenance  to  attract  the  eye  of 
the  beholder.  ^  pin,  he  will  be  forlorn  of  men,  because  all  will 
hold  themselves  aloof  fi'om  him.     yiT*,  chastened  and  broken  by 

severe  sicknesses,  as  in  Judg.  viii.  16.     So  R.  D "IDDDJ, 

i.  e.  he  will  be  as  one  despised  and  rejected,  from  whom  every 
one  hides  his  face;  comp.  Deut.  xxxi.  18.  iniJlKTI  N?1,  for  he 
seemed  in  our  eyes  to  be  worth  nothing  at  all  •  comp.  Is.  ii.  22. 
*  In  accordance  with  the  view  which  we  have  stated  above,  these 
are  the  words  of  Israel,  recognising  what  was  previously  hidden 
from  them,  and  exclaiming,  Now  wc  know  that  it  was  for  our 
sins  that  he  sufifered.  D72D,  the  suffix  is  appended,  although 
the  substantive  has  preceded,  for  emphasis,  as  Exod.  ii.  6  (R. 

D )     But  we  at  that  time  erred  in   imagining  that  his 

sufferings  were  for  his  own  sin.     ^  pPiniD,  as  7711,  Ps.  cix.  22. 


-liii.  9.]  HERZ    IIOMBERG.  403 

IJ^yc'DD,  071  accotmt  of  our  transgressions, — 10  as  in  *(3nD,  Josh, 
xxii.  24  :  so  also  iyni3iyO.     'J1  "\D10,  i.e.  whatever  might  rem,ove 
or  put  an  end  to  our  peace  he  took  upon  himself.     *  We  v>ent 
astray  like  sheep,  which  go  they  know  not  whither,     yjsn  :  the 
root  yjS,  besides  its  usual  and  known  significations,  denotes  also 
bodily  or  moral   perception   pi'oduced   either  by  contact  with 
a  sensible  object,  or  by  a  mental  representation,  or  liy  some 
other  influence  affecting  the  subject :  and  so  it  said,  A  block- 
head is  not  easily  touclied,  i.  e.  has  no  feeling,     jiy,  the  penalty 
for  iniquity,  as  Gen.  iv.  13.     ''  iljyi,  was  answered  with  words  of 
fraud  (Rashi).    *  "ivy  :  the  ruler  who  is  a  protector  of  his  people 
is  called  IViy  (a  sovereign);  comp.  i  Sam.  ix.  17.     t3Dt^D,  i.e. 
the  place  in  which  the  judges  sit.     np7,  was  seized,  as  i  Sam. 
iv.  11:   and  hence  the  spoil  which  soldiers  take  forcibly  from 
their  captives  is  termed  TWph'd.     The  meaning  is  that  they  will 
seize  him,  and  neither  allow  him  to  be  brought  before  the  sove- 
reign for  fear  he  should  have  compassion  on  him  and  rescue  him 
from  their  hands,  nor  permit  him  to  appear  before  the  judges 
lest  on  trial  he  should  be  acquitted  :  thus  he  will  be  debaiTcd 
from  both   tlie  sovereign  and  the  jiulge.     T\rW^,  to  declare,  as 
Ps.  cxliii.  5 :  the  clause,  And  his  generation,  etc.,  forms  a  paren- 
thesis, in  which   the  proj)het  asks.  Who   would  even   mention 
with  his  lijis  that   cruel   and  wicked  generation  which  would 
interdict  him  guiltless  and  uncondemned  from  the  land  of  the 
living  1     The  meaning  of  "\T33  is  not  that  they  will  actually  kill 
him  (else  what  can  be  the  signification   of  '  he  shall  see  seed, 
have  long  days,'  and  '  therefore  I  will  divide  him,'  etc.  ?),  but 
that  they  will  devise  to  do  so,  and  will  decree  that  he  is  to  have 
his  grave  with  the  wicked  :  God  liowever  will  deliver  him,  and 
not  leave  him  in  their  power  ;  "ITJ3  thus  signifies  was  decreed, 
as  Est.  ii.  i.     ®  jn"*!:  we  have  already  shewn  how  they  agreed 
together  to  condemn  him  as  one  accursed ;  so  that  if  they  suc- 
ceeded in  putting  him  to  death,  they  would  have  buried  him 
beside  the  wicked.     "i''*kJ'y,  used  as  in  Job  xxvii.  19,  'The  rich 
lieth  down,  and  doth  so  no  more,'  where  Job  adds  (verse  13), 

D  d  2 


404  UKRZ    liOMBERO.  [liii.  lo- 

'This  is  tlio  portion  of  the  wicked  man:'  the  word  appears,  then, 
to  be  sometimes  used  especially  of  one  who  has  enriched  him- 
self by  robbery  and  violence,  and  is  here,  therefore,  parallel  to 
the  'wicked.'  VniD3  :  the  sense  of  the  whole  is,  'And  he 
made  in  his  deaths  his  grave  with  the  wicked  and  the  rich : ' 
the  plural  deatlis  is  used  because  piercing  him,  as  cruel  men 
do,  through  and  through,  they  would,  so  to  speak,  be  putting 
him  to  death  again  and  again.  ^°  But  tlie  Lord,  in  his  own 
deep  purpose,  was  pleased  to  bruise  him,  as  the  prophet  pro- 
ceeds to  describe :  if,  he  says,  addressing  the  Almighty,  thou 
hast  decreed  to  viake  his  soul  a  tresjiciss-qfferiny,  it  is  only  in 
order  that  he  may  see  seed,  and  have  long  days,  the  meaning 
being,  that  this  had  been  done  for  the  purpose  of  convincing 
the  kings  of  the  Gentiles  that  he  was  to  be  the  messenger  of 
God,  sent  to  gather  together  the  outcasts  of  Israel.  "  The 
travail  of  his  soul  he  will  see,  i.  e.  feel,  even  to  satiety ;  comp. 
Job  vii.  4,  '  I  am  full  of  tossings  to  and  fro  : '  nevertheless,  in 
his  kioowledge  or  reflection  he  will  justify  the  judgment  deter- 
mined against  him  by  the  Almighty ;  for  my  servant  will  be 
just  for  many,  i.  e.  there  ai-e  some  men  who  are  perfectly  right- 
eous, and  free  from  every  taint  of  transgression,  and  who  fol- 
low their  Maker's  will,  but  who  at  the  same  time  are  righteous 
only  for  themselves,  and  will  not  sacrifice  their  own  lives  for 
the  sake  of  others  ;  my  servant,  however,  will  be  righteous  for 
many,  'adventuring  his  soul  freely'  for  the  general  good,  and 
not  spai'ing  his  own  life  if  others  might  be  benefited  through 
his  deatli,  but  enduring  the  burden  of  their  sins  in  order  to 
release  them  from  punishment.  '^'^  Therefore,  because  he  thus 
sacrificed  himself  for  the  general  advantage,  the  lot  and  good 
fortune  of  the  many  will  be  his  portion,  and  the  reward  for  his 
sufferings.  77E^  does  not  here  signify  the  spoil  of  war,  for 
nothing  is  said  of  any  battle  to  be  waged  by  him,  but  abun- 
dance and  plenty  of  good  things,  as  in  Prov.  xxxi.  ii  :  the 
meaning  being  that  like  one  of  the  mighty  among  the  kings 
of   the    earth,    he   will    live    in    affluence    and    plenty,     myn. 


-liii.  12.]  HERZ    IIOMBERG.  405 

■poured  out  liis  soul,  emptying  it  from  Iiis  body,  as  Geu. 
xxiv.  20.  He  was  counted  with  the  transijressors,  because  they 
appointed  his  grave  by  the  8i<le  of  the  wicked.  y^3D^  he 
will  intercede  for  the  transgressors,  and  for  tliose  who  rise 
up  against  him. 


XLIX.     R.  YAQOB   YOSEPH   MORD'KHAI 
HAYYIM   PASSANI. 

I  am  much  surprised  at  those  commentators  who  have  ap- 
plied themselves  to  investigate  the  meaning  of  this  Parashah. 
One,  for  example,  maintains  that  it  was  the  intention  of  the 
propliet  to  allude  to  Moses ;  another,  that  he  referred  to  the 
Israelitish  people ;  a  third  aj^plies  it  to  king  Josiah  ;  a  fourth 
dwells  much  upon  the  King  Messiah,  and  so  brings  the 
Midrash  into  the  text  :  for  ourselves,  however,  we  know  with 
certainty  that  Scripture  never  bears  any  other  than  the  simple 
and  literal  meaning ;  a  different  supposition  will  not  enable  us 
to  '  reply  to  Epicurus  ^ .'  Moreover,  not  one  of  the  explanations 
mentioned  is  in  complete  accordance  with  the  language  of  the 
text,  or  succeeds  in  satisfying  us,  still  less  does  the  opinion  of 
the  disbelievers  who  make  these  verses  the  foundation  of  their 
faith.  Thus  the  words  '  had  no  form  or  comeliness '  cannot 
possibly  be  interpreted  of  Moses,  for  every  one  is  well  aware 
tliat  Moses  had  a  fine  form  and  the  strength  of  a  lion.  And 
if  (as  is  indeed  the  case)  the  words,  '  For  the  transgi-ession  of 
my  people  were  they  smitten,'  allude  to  Israel,  then  the  person 
described  as  sufl'ering  for  the  nation  cannot  be  the  nation  itself. 
And  Josiah,  because  the  measure  of  the  iniquities  of  his  gene- 
ration was  then  filled  up,  in  spite  of  all  the  integrity  of  his 
heart,  was  still  never  vouchsafed  such  a  signal  favour  as  that 

"  Sec  p.  114. 


Hi.  I3-IS-]    R.  YAQOB  YOSEPH  MORD'kHAI  HAYYIM  PASSANI.    407 

'  kings  should  close  their  mouths  at  him/  etc. ;  nor  could  it  be 
said  of  him  that  he  Avould  'have  long  days,'  for  he  perished 
prematurely  in  the  prime  of  manhood.  And  as  regards  the 
explanation  which  refers  it  to  the  Messiah,  we  may  say,  Take 
heed,  O  wise  men,  in  your  words,  even  though  the  language  be 
meant  to  be  metaphorical  and  indirect.  I  have  therefore  been 
led  to  the  conviction  that  the  Parashah  may  after  all  be  referred 
intelligibly  and  naturally  to  Hezekiah.  For  although,  like  all 
other  prophecies,  most  of  Isaiah's  also  point  to  the  latter  days, 
when  the  Messiah  will  have  appeared,  still  there  are  particular 
ones  which  have  reference  to  that  just  monarch,  and  to  the  fall 
of  Sanherib,  which  took  place  in  his  days  and  through  his 
merits  ^. 

LII.  ^'^  Behold  my  servant  shall  ]>ros]per,  as  it  is  said,  2  Chron. 
xxxii.  30,  '  And  Hezekiah  prospered  in  all  his  works  : '  he  is 
rightly  also  called  God's  '  servant,'  for  he  not  only  turned  him- 
self, but  also  brought  back  Judah,  and  a  great  part  of  Israel 
as  well,  to  the  service  of  God — an  achievement  which  none  of 
his  ancestors,  in  spite  of  all  their  excellent  intentions,  ever  con- 
templated. For  he  put  away  the  high  places,  and '  sent  letters 
into  every  tribe  of  Israel,  saying,  Turn  ye  to  the  Lord  God  of 
Abraham,'  etc.  (i.b.  xsx.  6),  and  restored  the  crown  to  its  former 
state,  entreating  the  favour  of  his  princes  and  ministers,  almost 
prostrating  himself  before  them,  while  he  said,  'Hear  me,  ye 
Levites,  now  sanctify  yourselves,  and  sanctify  the  house  of  the 
Lord  God  of  your  fathers,  and  cany  out  the  impurity  from  the 
holy  place,'  etc.  {ib.  xxix.  5  f.)  He  shall  he  high  and  exalted, 
and  lofty  exceedingly ;  for  so  it  is  said  (xxxii.  23),  'And  many 
brought  gifts  to  tlie  Lord,  and  presents  unto  Hezekiah  king 
of  Judah,  and  he  was  exalted  in  the  eyes  of  all  the  nations.' 
'^  The  dangerous  illness  which  attacked  him  made  '  the  strength 
of  his  face  to  change ;'  and  'the  fatness  of  his  flesh  gi-ew  lean,' 
as  he  drew  near  to  the  '  gates  of  death.'     ^'  Many  kings  and 

*>  Compare  Sa'adyah  Ibn  Dan&n,  p.  304. 


408     R.  TAQOB  YOSEPH  mord'khai  hayyim  passani.    [Hii.  I- 

princes  were  amazed  exceedingly  at  the  miracle  wrought  for 
him,  for  not  with  sword  or  spear  did  the  Lord  save  his  anointed 
from  the  hand  of  Sanherib :  but  greater  far  was  the  miracle 
which  displayed  itself  in  the  world  when  the  orb  of  the  sun 
turned  backward  before  the  eyes  of  all,  and  when  Merodach- 
Baladan  sent  ambassadors  to  him  to  enquire  about  the  portent 
which  had  occurred  in  the  earth ;  this  is  what  is  meant  by  the 
words,  WJiat  had  not  been  told  them  they  have  seen;  for  they 
perceived  clearly  that  so  highly  favoured  was  he  in  the  eyes 
of  the  Lord,  that  the  order  of  creation  was  altered  for  his 
benefit. 

LIII.  '  Who  believelh  our  report  ?  so,  feigning  surprise,  asks 
the  prophet  of  his  pious  contemporaries ;  for  good  Hezekiah 
was  a  descendant  of  the  wicked  Ahaz,  and  upon  him  was  the 
arm  of  the  Lord  revealed  in  the  destruction  of  Sanherib.  ^  At 
the  period  when  all  were  immersed  in  idolatrous  worshijjs, 
Hezekiah  came  up  as  a  sucker  or  root,  out  of  the  dry  and  weary 
earth,  in  which  was  no  religion  or  fear  of  God.  ^  As,  from  his 
birth  upwards,  Hezekiah  rejected  the  deeds  of  his  fathers,  and 
the  shameful  customs  of  his  age,  the  people  abominated  him, 
and  held  aloof  fx'om  him,  and  hence  he  was  despised  and  forlorn 
of  men,  his  father  in  particular  hating  him  even  to  the  day  of 
bis  death,  for  he  '  made  him  pass  through  the  fii'e  to  Moloch ' 
(2  Kings  xvi.  3,  and  Sanhedrin,  fol.  69),  though  he  was  deli- 
vered miraculously  by  God^".  Still,  however,  the  few  righteous 
who  were  to  be  found  at  that  time  felt  a  longing  and  desire  for 
him,  saying,  O  that  the  '  rod '  were  '  come  out  of  the  stump  of 
Yishai,  and  the  spirit  of  knowledge  and  of  the  fear  of  the 
Lord  were  resting  upon  him  !'  and  this  is  the  meaning  of  the 
words,  lie  had  no  beauty,  yet  we  desired  him.  *  When,  after 
his  father's  death,  he  ascended  the  throne,  his  servants  were 
so  much  dissatisfied  that,  with  Shebna  at  their  head,  they  rc- 
l)cllcd  against  him,  and  sought  to  submit  themselves  to  the 

<=  Compare  above,  p.  208. 


-liii.  8.]      R.  YAQOB  YOSEPII  ^rOIlD'KIIAI   IIAYYIM   I'ASSANl.     409 

wicked  Peqah,  son  of  Remaliah,  king  of  Israel,  as  Isaiah  nar- 
rates (v.  6);  and  when  they  saw  him  afflicted  with  severe 
iUness,  their  hatred  carried  itself  still  further,  and  they  '  poured 
contempt '  upon  their  '  prince,'  judging  maliciously  that  his 
sufferings  were  because  he  had  despised  their  own  wicked  faith, 
and  that  tiie  graven  images  of  their  gods  had  hidden  their  yaces 
from  him.  ^"' "  They  did  so  still  more  when  they  saw  that  his 
affliction  prevented  him  from  maintaining  the  style  and  manners 
of  a  court  {Sanh.  fol.  94),  for  he  would  eat  only  a  pound  of  flesh 
a  day:  since,  then,. he  'did  what  was  right  in  the  eyes  of  the 
Lord,  with  a  whole  heart,  as  David  his  father '  (2  Chron.  xxix.  2), 
and  'brought  out  the  impurity  from  the  house'  (ver.  5)  and 
restored  all  Israel  to  the  true  faith,  the  sufferings  which  he 
endured  must  have  been  for  the  sake  of  his  generation  ;  almost, 
indeed,  had  the  Almighty  determined  to  quench  the  coal  that 
was  left,  and  to  give  Jerusalem  into  the  hand  of  Sanh  crib,  and 
only  in  consequence  of  Hezekiah  was  the  redemption  of  their 
soul  achieved,  and  deliverance  wi'ought  for  them  by  his  trans- 
cendent merits,  so  far  surpassing  the  sufferings  which  he  bare. 
After  this,  however,  all  perceived  that  he  was  wounded  for 
their  transgressions,  and  bruised  for  their  iniquities,  in  order 
to  make  atonement  for  them  unto  God  ;  for  the  attribute  of 
judgment,  displaying  itself  before  them,  laid  upon  him  the 
iniquity  of  them  all,  as  the  text  says,/o?'  the  transgression  of 
my  jieople,  even  the  stroke  which  should  have  fallen  ^^pon  them. 
■^  When  his  sickness  was  at  its  worst,  he  acknowledged  the 
justice  of  God's  judgment  upon  him,  but  'like  a  dumb  man 
which  openeth  not  his  mouth,'  expected  from  hour  to  hour  the 
moment  of  his  death,  as  he  declares  himself  in  his  -wi'iting 
(Is.  xxxviii.  9),  '  I  said  in  the  cutting  off  of  my  days,  Let  me 
fo  into  the  gates  of  the  Underworld,'  etc.,  and  accepted  his 
afflictions  as  sent  upon  him  in  love,  without  murmuring,  or 
complaining  of  the  shortness  of  his  days.  *When,  however, 
he  lieard  the  prophet's  command,  '  Set  thy  house  in  order ; 
for  thou  shalt  die  and  not  live'  (vcr.  i),  he  entreated  God  to 


410    R.  YAQOB  YOSEPH  mord'kiiai  hayyim  passani.     [liii.  9- 

grant  him  a  longer  life  in  order  that  he  might  be  enabled  to 
Berve  him ;  else  he  would  have  been  taken  from  sovereignty 
and  judgment  in  the  prime  of  life  and  when  his  reign  had  but 
lately  commenced  :  now,  if  his  death  had  occurred  immediately 
after  the  death  of  Ahaz,  before  he  had  had  time  to  restore  the 
faith  of  his  peojile  to  its  pristine  integrity,  loho  would  have 
told  of  his  generation  ?  it  would  have  been  rather  a  generation 
'departing  in  darkness'  until  it  was  all  consumed  without 
having  seen  the  mighty  acts  of  the  Lord,  wrought  by  him  on 
behalf  of  this  righteous  king ;  "  nor  would  he  have  left  any 
memorial  of  himself  after  him,  but  would  have  been  bm'ied 
with  his  wicked  father — as  the  text  states.  And  lie  made  his 
grave  with  the  wicked,  implying  that  it  was  so  determined — 
in  spite  of  the  innocency  of  his  hands,  and  the  fact  that  he 
had  done  no  violence.  But  it  was  the  Lord's  pleasure  merely 
to  bruise  him,  and  to  put  the  guilt  of  his  generation  on  his  soul ; 
accordingly,  after  his  prayer,  when  God  had  heard  his  sui)pli- 
cation  and  seen  his  tears,  the  promise  is  given,  He  shall  see 
seed,  shall  prolong  his  days;  thus  the  Almighty  added  to  his  life 
fifteen  years,  and  let  him  '  see  seed,'  for  previously  he  had  had 
no  children.  ^"^  Therefore  I  will  divide  him  a  jjortioii  with  many, 
viz.  the  spoil  of  Sanherib,  because  he  bare  the  iniquities  of  the 
age,  and  was  counted  as  a  transgressor,  and  above  all  interceded 
for  the  remnant  that  were  still  left  (who  were  '  transgressors '), 
as  it  is  said  (2  Kings  xix.  15),  'And  Hezekiah  prayed  before  the 
Lord,'  etc.;  and  (2  Chron.  xxxii.  20),  'And  Hezekiah  the  king 
prayed,'  etc. :  this,  then,  is  the  meaning  of  interceded  for  the 
transgressors,  in  order,  viz.  that  the  city  might  not  fall  into  the 
hands  of  the  king  of  Assyria.  And  so,  when  all  Judah  and 
Jerusalem  and  the  remnant  of  Israel  returned  to  the  service 
of  the  Lord,  and  the  sanctuary  was  restored  to  its  original 
purity,  and  the  priests  to  their  ministrations,  and  the  Levites 
to  their  pulpits  il  (all  which  Ahaz  had  neglected),  and  when 

^  Whence  they  blessed  the  people. 


-liii.  12.]     R.  YAQOB  YOSKPH  MOUD'kHAI  HAYYIM    I'ASSANl.    411 

tlicy  beheld  the  miracles,  then  all  his  servants  began  to  love  and 
honour  him;  and  when  he  died,  he  did  not  'make  his  grave 
with  the  wicked,'  as  had  been  determined,  and  as  nearly  took 
]ihice,  but  he  ended  his  life  honourably  and  'was  buried  in  the 
ascent  of  the  sejiulchres  of  the  sons  of  David '  (2  Chron. 
xxxii.  33). 

Such  is  the  interpretation  which  I  have  been  able  to  give 
of  these  verses.  And  if  my  view  is  not  in  accordance  with  the 
mind  of  the  prophet,  I  pray  the  Almighty  to  gi-ant  me  a  reward 
for  what  I  have  done  !  May  the  Lord  lighten  mine  eyes  in 
his  law  !  and  may  the  purpose  of  mine  heart  be  well-pleasing 
to  him  ! 


L.     SH'MUEL   DAVID   LUZZATTO. 

Behold  my  servant.  From  this  point  to  the  end  of  chapter 
liii.  is  a  single  2>ropliecy,  delineating  the  servant  of  the  Lord, 
first  as  crushed  beneath  every  description  of  suffering,  and  then 
as  rising  up  in  prosperity  and  great  glory.  We  have  already 
seen  elsewhere  in  these  prophecies  hoAV  the  '  servant  of  the  Lord ' 
is  a  designation  for  Israel :  as,  then,  the  prophet  says  there 
expressly  '  Israel  my  servant,"  and  '  Jacob  my  servant '  (xli.  8, 
9,  xliv.  I,  2,  21,  xlv.  4),  so  here  it  is  plain  that  he  is  referring 
likewise  to  Israel,  and  describing  first  their  depression  whilst  in 
exile,  and  afterwards  their  greatness  in  the  time  of  deliverance. 
In  the  same  way  the  Parashah  has  been  intei-pi-eted  by  Rashi, 
R.  Abraham  'Ibn  'Ezra,  E,.  Yoseph  Qamhi  (in  the  Sepher  ha- 
ydluy  a),  R.  Mosheh  ben  Nahraan,  R.  David  Qamhi,  Don  Yizhaq 
Abarbanel  (in  his  first  explanation);  and  amongst  Christians,  by 
Dciderlein,  and,  following  him,  by  Carl  Georg  Schuster,  Ecker- 
mann,  Eichhorn,  Telge,  and  Rosenmiiller.  And  that  already  in  the 
days  of  the  Tannaim^  this  interpretation  was  adopted  by  the 
Jews,  is  attested  by  Origen  '^.  The  Christians,  however,  explain 
it  in  their  usual  manner ;  but  they  have  been  already  answered 
by  'Ibu  'Ezra,  Abarbanel,  Rosenmiiller,  and  Geseuius.  Rosen- 
miiller in  his  younger  days,  and  after  him  Gesenius,  referred  the 

*  See  above,  p.  49 ;  and  compare  also  what  is  stated  iu  the  Preface. 

^  I.e.  the  doctors  of  the  '  Mishna,'  opposed  to  the  'ntion,  or  Amoraim, 
who  lived  after  the  redaction  of  the  Mishna,  and  embodied  the  traditional 
teaching  of  the  Tannciim  in  the  '  Gemara.' 

'■  Cels.  i.  55  :  the  Jew  with  whom  Ori{^en  once  disputi'd  maintained  ravra 
nurpoiprjTfv'jOai  ws  irfpl  (vds  tov  uKov  Kaov,  Hal  yfvo/xh'ov  iv  rjj  Siaanopa, 
Kai  v\r]yivTos,  I'va  iroWoi  irpoarjKvrot  yivcovrai,  x.  t.  \. 


lii.  13,  14.]  Sh'mUEL    DAVID    LU/.ZATTO,  413 

Parashah  to  the  prophets  (and  very  siinilarly  Paulus,  to  the  up- 
riglit  in  Israel);  Imt  Roseniniiller  himself  abandoned  this  view 
on  account  of,  certain  expressions  which  were  inapplicahle  to 
them  :  I  have  pointed  out  before  that  the  prophets  did  not  form 
a  company  of  themselves  such  as  might  be  denoted  by  a  col- 
lective term  like  'my  servant;'  nor  do  we  anywhere  find  that 
the  word  is  so  used  explicitly  of  the  prophets  as  a  body,  for  the 
phrase  enii)loyed  above  (xliv.  26),  'confirming  the  word  of  his 
servant,'  does  not  refer  to  them  as  a  collective  aggregate,  but  to 
each  and  every  individual  prophet  who  has  ever  existed.  'Ibn 
'Ezra  at  the  end  of  the  chapter  gives  it  as  his  opinion  that  the 
jjrophet  means  to  allude  to  himself;  Yonathan  and  the  Korem^ 
a])ply  the  prophecy  to  the  Messiah ;  Augusti  to  Uzziah  king 
of  Judah  ;  Bahrdt  and  Kongnenburg  to  Hezekiah ;  Abarbanel 
(in  his  second  part)  to  Josiah ;  Voltaire  and  Staudliu  to  ,the 
prophet  Isaiah.  And  E,.  'Eli'ezer,  the  Grerman,  author  of  the 
'  "Works  of  the  Lord,'  interprets  it  of  Job.  For  my  own  part,  I 
understand  it  of  Israel  in  exile ;  though  at  the  same  time  per- 
ceiving that  the  language  used  is  applicable,  not  to  the  times  of 
the  Babylonian  exile,  but  to  the  exile  in  which  we  are  placed 
now.  Accordingly,  it  appears  to  me  that  the  prophecies  follow- 
ing relate  to  the  future  redemption,  and  not  to  that  from  Bal)y- 
lon.  And  as,  above,  there  came  first  (xxxix.  7)  the  prediction 
of  the  Babylonian  captivity,  which  was  then  followed  by  a  series 
of  proi)hecies  relating  to  the  deliverance  from  Babylon,  so  here 
the  picture  of  Israel  in  exile  is  succeeded  by  a  number  of  pro- 
phecies describing  the  deliverance  that  is  still  to  come. 

LII.  '^^  Behold  my  servant  Isi'ael  shall  prosjjer,  in  compensa- 
tion for  his  having  been  during  exile  in  adversity,  and  his  affairs 
uniformly  unfortunate:  nor  will  he  only  'prosper;'  he  will 
moreover  be  hi(jh  and  exalted,  and  lofty  exceediwjhj.  "  Js  many 
were  astonished  at  thee,  when  they  saw  thy  affliction  in  exile,  so 
wilt  thou  then  be  high  and  lifted  u]),  and  shalt  scatter  many 

'^  The  title  of  Herz  Romberg's  Commentary  above,  No.  XLVIII. 


414  SH'mUEL    DAVID    LUZZATTO.  [Hi.  15- 

nattons.  So  marred  and  altered  was  his  countenance  beyond 
men,  etc.,  is  parentlietical  (Rosenniiillcr,  Gescnius)  :  the  prophet, 
it  may  be  observed,  commeuecs  iu  the  second  person,  but  having 
in  the  parenthesis  employed  the  third  {'his  countenance,'  'Jiis 
form '),  he  continues  to  make  use  of  it,  saying,  '  So  shall  he 
startle,'  etc.  nriK'p  :  he  should  have  written  nnti'D,  in  which 
case  it  would  have  been  the  participle,  as  Mai.  i.  1 4  :  the  Ilireq 
and  Fathah  are,  however,  extremely  difficult  to  account  for. 
My  pupil  llabbi  ^I.  Ehrcnrcicli,  the  Levite,  says  that  the 
punctuators  pointed  the  word  so  for  the  reason  which  I  have 
explained  above  (xlix.  7),  to  indicate,  viz.  that  they  did  not 
connect  the  word  with  the  meaning  '  inarred,'  but  with  that  of 
anointed,  as  Lev.  xxi.  12  ;  and  this  view  is  correct.  To  Israel, 
however,  iu  their  present  exile  the  expression  is  still  eminently 
applicable ;  for  their  countenances  are  changed  so  as  to  be  un- 
like other  men's, — indeed,  all  who  see  them  recognise  them 
immediately,  afflictions  and  subjection  and  '  terror  on  every 
side '  being  stamped  visibly  on  our  faces.  But  this  could  not 
be  said  of  the  prophets ;  for  although  at  times  the  prophets  had 
their  enemies,  yet  they  never  .stood  in  such  awe  of  them  as  for 
their  '  form '  to  be  changed  ;  if  they  had  been  faint-hearted,  they 
would  simply  have  ceased  to  prophesy  altogether.  ^^  As  formerly 
in  his  depression  many  were  astonished  at  him,  so  now  in  his 
exaltation  he  will  occasion  in  many  nations  the  greatest  wonder. 
np,  from  the  root  ilTJ,  the  fundamental  meaning  of  which,  in  both 
Arabic  and  Hebrew,  is  to  leap,  as  in  Ixiii.  3,  Lev.  vi.  20,  2  Kings 
ix.  33,  all  passages  describing  the  'leaping'  or  'spurting'  of 
blood  fi'om  one  place  to  another;  accordingly,  in  Hif'il  it  signi- 
fies to  make  to  leap  or  spurt;  similarly,  in  German  we  have 
springen,  to  leap,  and  sprengen,  to  sprinkle.  Here  the  meaning 
is  that  he  will  cause  such  great  astonishment  among  the  nations 
that  in  their  amazement  they  will  start  from  tlicir  place,  as 
men  do  when  they  see  something  entirely  unexpected.  Since 
now  he  has  thus  alluded  to  the  idea  of  '  leaping,'  the  prophet 
proceeds.  At  him  kings  IXQp'' — a  word  which,  in  Cant.  ii.  8,  is 


-liii.  I.]  Sh'mUEL    DAVID    LUZZATTO.  415 

parallel  to  y7'^D,  'leaping/  though  here,  by  the  addition  of  DrT'D, 
he  gives  it  a  different  meaning,  viz.  th.at  of  dosinrj  the  mouth  as 
a  sign  of  teiTor  and  confusion,  as  Mic.  vii.  i6,  'Nations  shall  see 
and  be  confounded  at  all  their  might,  they  shall  lay  their  hand 
upon  their  mouth,'  Job  xxix.  9,  v.  16,  Ps.  cvii.  42.  Schroder, 
Rosenmiiller,  aud  Gesenius  explain  r\V  as  signifying  '  fill  with 
joy,'  like  exsuliare,  which  is  derived  from  saltare  :  this  sense, 
however,  does  not  suit  well  in  this  place,  nor  can  it  be  appro- 
priately connected  with  '  As  many  were  astonished,'  which  pre- 
cedes, or  with  *  At  him  kings  shall  close  their  mouth,'  which 
immediately  follows  it.  Jerome  and  others  have  interpreted 
'  will  atone  for  many  nations,'  from  the  notion  of  the  sprinkling 
of  blood  ;  but  this  view  has  been  abeady  replied  to  by  Schroder, 
who  points  out  (i)  that  ntn  is  never  used  without  mention  of 
the  object  sprinkled,  wliether  it  be  blood,  or  water,  or  oil  : 
(2)  that  the  phrase  is  not  E?^N  nm,  but  C>^N  bv  nrn  or  K»N  bn 
[not  '  to  sprinkle  a  man,'  but  '  to  sprinkle  upon  a  man '],  for  ntn 
signifies  properly  to  make  to  leap  or  spurt ;  (3)  that  such  a  sense 
would  be  out  of  connexion  with  'As  many  were  astonished.' 
For  that  which  had  not  been  told  them  they  have  seen,  viz.  words 
the  like  of  which  had  never  been  declared  to  them.  The  ren- 
dering 'shall  startle  many  nations'  agrees  admirably  with  the 
supposition  that  Israel  is  here  referred  to :  against  the  idea  that 
the  prophets  are  meant  is  the  fact  that  their  enemies  and  revilers 
were  not  the  Gentiles,  but  Israel  themselves,  and  that  the  pro- 
phets had  no  controversy  with  the  Gentiles,  but  only  with  the 
children  of  their  own  people  ;  if  then  the  prophets  are  intended, 
what  object  could  there  have  been  in  mentioning  the  Gentiles  1 

LIII.  '  After  the  words  For  what  was  not  told  t/iem,  etc.,  the 
prophet  represents  the  nations  as  replying :  If  we  had  spread 
the  news  of  this  gi-eat  event  happening,  who  would  have  believed 
our  report  ? — so  strange  and  preternatural  was  the  announcement : 
And  the  arm  of  the  Lord,  for  whom  is  it  revealed  ? — spoken 
contemptuously.  'Whom  did  the  Lord  choose,  to  manifest  hie 
power  on  his  behalf  ?  he  ought,  forsooth,  to  have  revealed  it  to 


416  SH'mUEL   DAVID    LUZZATTO.  [liii.  2- 

aid  those  who  were  in  tlic  possession  of  dignity  and  dominion ; 
hut  lie  has  done  otherwise,  he  has  chosen  to  himself  "a  people 
despised  and  spoiled,"  humbled  and  contemned  :  who  could  have 
believed  thisf  (Abarbanel.)  i:ny")»C'^  :  many  explain,  'the  re- 
port which  we  received,'  understanding  the  announcement  of 
the  prophet  at  the  end  of  the  chajiter  :  but  Isaiah  rather  con- 
ceives the  nations  as  actually  seeing  what  is  described,  not  as 
merely  hearing  it  from  the  mouth  of  the  jirophet.  Gesenius 
supposes  Isaiah  to  be  speaking  in  behalf  of  himself  and  the 
prophets  his  companions,  and  asking  who  believed  the  an- 
nouncements which  they  had  made  respecting  Israel's  future 
redemption.  ^  The  servant  of  the  Lord  came  up  and  budded 
in  exile  before  him  and  by  his  help,  like  a  sucker  or  shoot  issuing 
forth  from  a  tree,  or  like  a  root  notwithstanding  that  it  was 
planted  in  the  drif  earth  :  exactly  as  no  one  can  imagine  a  plant 
flourishing  in  a  dry  and  uncultivated  soil,  so  it  w^as  impossible 
to  picture  the  servant  of  the  Lord  as  springing  up  and  growing 
high.  The  meaning  of  the  whole  verse  is  that  'he  came  up 
before  him  out  of  the  dry  earth  like  a  sucker  or  root.'  "iNJl  N^ 
inxij"!  mn  NPI  X?^:  so  these  words  must  be  joined,  the  sense 
being  that  his  form  had  no  beauty  calculated  to  attract  our 
gaze,  nor  did  we  care  even  to  look  upon  it ;  nor,  again,  had 
he  any  beaitt?/  that  we  anight  desire  him  (R.  Me'ir  Obernik, 
Rosenmiiller,  Gesenius,  and  the  Greek  translator  Symmachus). 
But  the  punctuators,  as  their  custom  is,  devised  a  contrivance 
for  the  purpose  of  averting  dishonour  from  Israel,  and  accentu- 
ated in  such  a  manner  that  the  meaning  might  be  '  although  he 
had  no  beauty,  yet  we  looked  at  him  and  desii-ed  him.'  The 
sense  was  also  altered  by  Yonathan  in  the  Targum :  his  render- 
ing is,  '  His  form  no  profane  form,  and  the  terror  of  him  not 
that  of  any  ordinary  man  ;  his  comi)lexion  a  holy  comj^lexion, 
so  that  all  that  saw  him  gazed  at  him.'  The  words  '  he  had  no 
form,'  etc.,  refer  to  the  servant  of  the  Lord,  not  to  the  sucker  or 

"  I.e.  'he  had  no  form  or  comeliness  that  we  might  look  upon  him.' 


-liii.  4.]  SH'mUEI,    DAVID    I.liZ/.A'lTO.  417 

the  root  ;  they  contain,  however,  the  reason  why  the  peopla 
compared  liim  to  something  emerging  out  of  the  dry  earth,  b^ 
cause,  namely,  his  form  was  despised  in  their  eyes.  ^  Jle  was 
despised,  etc. :  so  is  the  servant  of  the  Lord,  i.  e.  Israel  during 
the  exile.  CU'^ii  bin,  frailest  of  men;  compare  DTK  7''DD,  Prov. 
XV.  20,  'foolish  of  men,'  i.e.  the  most  foolish  amongst  men. 
?Tn  signifies  '  ready  to  perish,  frail,'  as  Ps.  xxxix.  5  (Martini 
and  Rosennniller) :  not  dissimilar  is  the  first  explanation  given 
by  Qamhi,  '  most  insignificant  of  men.'  Geseuius,  however,  and 
others  have  adopted  Qamhi's  second  explanation,  '  forlorn  of 
men,' — one  from  whom  men  ceased,  and  with  whom  they  would 
not  associate  :  but  the  root  never  bears  the  signification /brsa^e; 
and  Job  xix.  14,  the  passage  cited  in  proof  of  this,  does  not 
mean  '  my  neighbours  forsook  me,'  but  '  they  ceased  to  be  and 
appear  as  my  neighbours.'  vn  ]})1\  'acquainted  with  sick- 
ness,' like  yT'O,  Ps.  Iv.  14,  a  metaphorical  expression,  as  though 
Isi'ael  were  a  friend  and  companion  of  every  description  of 
ailment ;  compare  Prov.  vii.  4,  '  Say  to  wdsdom.  Thou  art  my 
sister,  and  call  understanding  thine  acquaintance.'  Rosenrauller 
and  Gesenius  explain,  '  known  on  account  of  his  sicknesses.' 
My  pupil  R.  Ephraim  Raphael  Girondi  takes  the  word  in  .its 
ordinary  sense,  as  signifying  'known  to  sickness,'  as  though  the 
sicknesses  were  represented  as  retux-ning  to  their  lodging-place, 
and  taking  up  their  abode  with  one  whom  they  recognised  as 
ready  to  receive  them ;  and  this  view  is  correct.  31  "inDID31  : 
his  appearance  was  such  as  almost  to  cause  every  one  that  saw 
him  to  hide  their  faces  from  him,  in  order  not  to  look  upon 
him.  "IJTIDD  is  for">'JJlDD;  compare  1p3T'\  i  Sam.  xiv.  22  (Qamhi, 
Roscnmiiller,  Gesenius) :  it  is  accordingly  Hifil,  and  means 
'  making  others  hide  their  faces.'  '}^  nD3,  he  loas  despised,  and 
accounted  in  our  e}  es  as  nothing  worth.  *  But  the  sicknesses 
which  ought  to  have  come  upon  us — as  though  to  say,  We, 
rather  than  he,  deserved  to  be  punished— it  seemed  as  if  he 
hare  in  our  stead.  Stricken,  viz.  by  the  hand  of  God  ;  the 
'  God '  mentioned  in^mediately  afterwai'ds  belongs  to  all  three 

E  e 


418  SH'mUEL   DAVID    LUZZATTO.  [liii.  5- 

words  ['stricken,'  'smitten,'  'afflicted'].  n^JD  is  beyond  ques- 
tion in  Stat,  constr.,  and  must  be  pointed  with  zere  (as 
in  the  editions  of  Brescia  and  of  5278  a.m. =  1518  a.d.):  in 
some  copies,  however,  it  is  pointed  with  segol,  but  this  is  only 
an  error:  in  the  great  Bible  of  the  year  5285  A.M.  (=1525), 
it  is  with  zere,  and  the  ]lllas6ra  on  the  word  says  distinctly, 
'  Twice  with  qamez,  once  written  with  i/od,  nonPDi  3"in  ^30,' 
i.  e.  n3D  occurs  on  two  occasions  with  qamez  qaton  {^=.zere), 
upon  one  of  which  (Jer.  xviii.  21)  it  is  spelt  with  yod.  In  the 
other  great  Bibles  published  at  Venice,  although  the  Masora  is 
printed  at  the  side,  it  is  nevertheless  pointed  with  segol.  ^  ??nD, 
jnerced,  as  li.  9  ('Ibn  'Ezra,  Eosenmiiller,  Gesenius),  though 
there  it  is  the  active  participle,  while  here  it  is  the  passive 
one.  1yJ;t^'DD,  'on  account  0/ our  trausgi'essions,'  as  Lam.  iv.  13. 
'Jl  "1D1D,  the  sufferings  bringing  peace  which  ought  to  have  been 
ours  came  upon  him  :  possibly,  however,  the  prophet  intended 
13D1?K',  '  our  vengeance,'  as  xxxiv.  5,  '  the  year  of  vengeance,' 
Hos.  ix.  7,  Mic.  vii.  3,  for  which  the  punctuators  have  substi- 
tuted )^^V^,  '  our  peace.'  "in"i3n31 :  this  ought  to  have  been 
pointed  irnsnni ;  but  the  punctuators  have  again  contrived 
otherwise,  deriving  the  word  from  m^n,  as  was  already  done 
by  Yonathan,  who  renders,  'And  for  that  he  was  wholly  de- 
voted to  his  words  our  sins  were  forgiven  us,' — the  word  \"ljn3 
being  formed  from  the  root  Nnj,  which  denotes  the  union  of 
hearts  together  for  the  purpose  of  repentance,  as  in  i  Sam.  vii.  2, 
where  the  Targum  has,  'And  all  the  house  of  Israel  were  gatJiered 
together  after  the  Avorship  of  the  Lord;'  and  Jer.  iii.  17,  where 
llpj  is  rendered  similarly.  In  the  clause  in  question,  the  pro- 
phet keeps  up  the  metaphor  by  employing  two  correlative 
terms;  in  plain  language,  the  meaning  is  that  by  what  he  en- 
dured we  are  in  prosperity.  Such  a  concei)tion  as  this,  how- 
ever, is  not  really  to  be  justified ;  as  Qamhi  objects,  one  nation 
cannot  suffer  for  the  sins  of  another ;  it  is  only  by  a  rhetorical 
figure  that  the  prophet  puts  the  words  into  the  Gentiles'  mouth, 
in  order  to  indicate  how  completely  they  will  recognise  that 


-liii.  7.]  SH'mUEL    DAVID    T.U/ZATTO.  419 

Israel  are  the  innocent  and  tliey  the  guilty.  It  is  further  clear 
that  all  this  cannot  relate  to  the  Babylonian  exile ;  for  at  that 
time  how  many  nations  were  in  subjection  to  Babylon  exactly 
as  Israel  was  !  and  we  do  not  find  that  the  condition  of  Israel 
was  worse  than  that  of  the  rest.  It  is,  however,  eminently  true 
of  the  present  exile,  during  which  from  one  generation  to  an- 
other Israel  continues  'a  people  despised  and  spoiled,'  a  people 
treated  as  no  other  nation  has  ever  been  treated.  "^  All  we  went 
astray  like  sJieep,  whose  manner  is  to  wander  hither  and  tliither; 
tve  turned  each  to  his  oion  ivay,  we  each  followed  after  the  stub- 
bornness of  his  own  heart — the  allusion  is  to  their  corrupt 
deeds,  not  to  their  false  beliefs — hut  the  Lord  made  to  light 
upon  him  the  penalty  owing  by  us  all.  Here  I  must  mention 
another  explanation  of  these  three  verses  (4-6)  which  I  found  in 
a  manuscript  commentary  on  the  book  Cuzari,  now  in  my  pos- 
session ;  the  writer  cites  it  in  the  name  of  his  master  in  his 
book,  A  testimony  for  Israel,  likewise  a  commentaiy  upon 
the  Cuzari.  According  to  this  view,  the  prophet  means  to 
declare  that  our  exile  is  in  no  way  owing  to  our  transgressions 
and  folly,  or  to  the  absence  of  all  knowledge  of  the  Law :  hence 
it  is  that  he  says  at  the  beginning,  '  Behold  my  servant  shall 
pi'osper;'  but  in  consequence  of  the  sins  and  wickedness  of  that 
generation,  viz.  the  generation  in  which  Isaiah  himself  lived, 
as  he  expresses  it  afterwards,  Israel  was  wounded  for  our  trans- 
gressions, i.  e.  our  condition  was  one  of  prosperity,  and  his  one 
of  suffering,  and  his  stripes  and  strokes  were  our  healing  :  for 
he  bare  what  should  have  been  borne  by  us,  and  so  little  was 
our  happiness  a  result  of  our  own  integrity  that  'we  all  went 
astray  like  sheep,'  etc.  And  some  support  may  be  found  for 
this  view,  if  we  consider  that  in  point  of  fact  it  was  solely  the 
sin  of  Manasseh  and  of  his  age  which  Avas  the  first  occasion  of 
Israel's  captivity.  "  K'aj,  perfect  Nif'al,  from  B'aj,  to  oppress  or 
exact,  Deut.  xv.  2.  njyj  :  the  commentators  explain,  '  was 
afilicted;'  but  in  this  way  a  difficulty  was  felt  fi'om  the  word 
Nini,  which  at  last  led  ]\Iartini  (with  whom  Rosenraiiller  agreed) 

1;  e  2 


420  SH'mUEL    DAVID    UZZATTO.  [llii.  8. 

to  correct,  and  read  njyjl  Nin  l^'3J  ^  (lesoniuB  understood  the 
words  to  mean  that  'they  oppressed  him  affhour/h  he  was  already- 
afflicted.'  But  the  right  course  is,  with  Cocceius,  to  take  njy 
in  the  sense  of  humbling,  which  it  bears  in  Exod.  x.  3  :  the  pro- 
phet says  tliat  they  oppressed  him,  yet  he  was  not  utterly  cast 
down,  but  endured  humbly  and  submissively,  and  opened  not 
his  mouth;  so  in  the  language  of  the  Talmud  ^7  ^n^jyj  [B'rd- 
klioth,  fol.  28),  i.  e.  *I  submit  myself  to  thee,'  and  similarly 
K*'thuhhoth,  67b,  Yoma,  22^ — it  is  surprising  that  Rashi  (on 
the  passage  i«  B'rdkhoth)  can  explain, '  I  have  spoken  more  than 
was  needed.'  And  as  a  lamb,  etc. :  the  comparison  to  a  lamb 
beara  reference  to  the  extortion  of  money  (which  is  represented 
by  the  fleece)  :  and  1^33  is  used  of  exaction  in  2  Kings  xxiii.  35, 
Deut,  XV.  2.  The  clause  and  ojpened  not  his  mouth  at  the  end 
of  the  verse  belongs  to  the  figure  of  the  sheep,  as  though  to  say 
that  his  not  opening  his  mouth  was  the  conclusion  of  the  whole. 
All  this  description  tallies  perfectly  with  the  condition  of  Israel 
in  exile ;  but,  as  'Ibn  'Ezra  observes,  by  no  means  with  that 
of  tlie  prophets  (as  Gesenius  thought),  for  if  these  had  never 
opened  their  mouth  with  courage  and  might,  they  would  not 
have  been  prophets  at  all,  and  if  they  had  desisted  from  pro- 
phesying no  one  would  have  hated  them.  Gesenius  alleges  in 
corroboration  of  his  opinion  the  woi-ds  of  Jeremiah  (xi.  19),  'I 
am  as  a  lamb  led  to  the  slaughter,'  omitting  to  notice  that 
Jeremiah  compares  himself  to  a  lamb,  not  because  of  his 
patience,  but  because  they  laid  wait  for  him  without  his  know- 
ledge, as  in  fact  he  immediately  says,  'And  I  knew  not  that 
against  me  had  they  formed  devices  : '  besides,  how  could  it  be 
thought  that  Jeremiah  was  patient  like  a  sheep  when  in  the 
very  next  verse  he  exclaims,  '  Let  me  see  thy  vengeance  of 
them?'  *"51  "ivyo  :  Rashi,  'Ibn 'Ezra,  and  Qamhi  explain  these 
words  to  mean  that  he  was  rescued  from  his  afflictions ;  but 
this  will  not  agree  with  the  context :   Abarbanel,  that  he  was 

'  Compare  above,  p.  76. 


liii.  8.]  SH'mUEL   DAVID    LUZZATTO.  421 

deprived  of  his  autliority  ;  but  iu  tliis  case  the  prophet  ought 
to  have  written,  'Sovereignty  and  judgment  was  taken  from 
him :'  Rosenmiiller  and  Gesenius,  that  he  perished  under  his 
sufferings;  the  sufferings  of  the  righteous,  however,  could  not 
be  denoted  by  the  term  'judgment.'  It  seems  to  me  that,  like 
many  of  the  other  words  expressive  of  negation,  p  here  signifies 
tvithout,  as  in  Deut.  xxxiii.  ii,  '  tvithout  their  rising  again,'  the 
meaning  being  that  he  was  put  to  death  without  the  authority 
of  the  government,  and  without  the  sentence  of  a  court  of  judg- 
ment :  any  one  that  found  him  murdered  him  if  he  so  chose ; 
and  such  has  at  some  periods  been  actually  the  condition  of 
Israel,  "yi)},  government :  comp.  i  Sam.  ix.  17,  Judg.  xviii.  7. 
'y\  nn  nxi  :  Rosenmiiller  and  Gresenius  render,  '  And  as  to 
the  men  of  his  generation,  who  was  there  of  them  that  con- 
sidered that  for  the  transgression,  etc.  1 '  but,  in  this  case,  Isaiah 
should  have  said  IIIIJOI,  'and  q/his  generation  ;'  and  rT'B'  more- 
over means  nothing  except  to  speak.  Rashi  renders, '  Who  could 
tell  of  all  the  sufferings  which  befel  him?'  but  this  is  not  de- 
noted by  the  word  '  generation.'  In  my  opinion,  riN  here  sig- 
nifies luith,  arid  the  passage  resembles  Ps.  cxxvii.  5,  '  For  they 
shall  speak  with  their  enemies  in  the  gate  :'  'who,'  Isaiah  asks, 
'  was  there  to  be  his  advocate,  and  to  speak  with  the  men  of  his 
generation  in  order  to  reprove  them  for  their  treatment  of  him'?' 
he  uses  the  word  nmti'''  to  indicate  how  none  could  be  found  to 
utter  even  the  slightest  sound  on  his  behalf;  and  he  says  'his 
generation,'  for  it  was  not  one  nation  or  even  two  that  perse- 
cuted him,  but  the  whole  of  his  contemjioraries  en  masse.  ^OJJ 
is  here  for  D''Oy,  as  Ps.  cxliv.  2  :  for  t/te  transgression  of  the 
2)eo2)les  who  were  themselves  liable  to  bear  the  stroke  that  was 
borne  by  him, — "ID^  yj3,  '  which  was  a  stroke  to  them '  (Martini 
and  Hensler).  Others  render,  '  The  stroke  came  upon  them ' 
(he  says  them,  because  the  servant  of  the  Lord  denotes  all 
Israel) ;  but  it  seems  to  me  improbable  that  the  prophet  should 
employ  expressions  like  ?  y33  ['a  stroke  to'  . .  .~\  and  b  n30  for 
stating  that  a  stroke  came  upon  any  one.     In  the  Septuagint 


422  SH'mUEL   DAVID    LUZZATTO  [liii.  Q- 

translation,  the  clause  is  rendered  as  though  it  read  '  stricken 
unto  death  '  (niO?  for  ID?),  which  has  been  adopted  hy  Houbigant, 
Capellus,  Michaelis,  Kemiicott,  Lowth,  Kojipc ;  but  how  could 
it  be  said  that  he  was  '  stricken  unto  death '  (which  would  im- 
ply that  he  was  not  dead  before),  when  the  prophet  had  both 
spoken  of  him  alrendy  as  '  cut  oflf  from  the  land  of  life,'  and 
immediately  proceeds, '  And  he  made  his  gi-ave  with  the  wicked  1' 
®  And  1i^  tiiade,  etc.,  i.  c.  he  was  buried  like  the  wicked  inglori- 
ously.  vniD3  :  since  JTIO  is  incapable  of  a  plural  (except  indeed 
in  niDn  Dv"iy  TlID,  Ezek.  xxviii.  lo,  where,  however,  it  is  not 
really  a  plural  from  niD,  for  the  prophet  is  addressing  an  indi- 
vidual, and  how  can  a  single  individual  die  more  than  once?),  it 
seems  to  me  best,  with  'Ibn  'Ezra  and  after  him  Lowth,  Martini, 
Lockemacher,  and  Gesenius  (in  his  second  edition),  to  derive 
this  from  ni33  in  the  sense  of  an  ornamental  building  constructed 
over  a  grave.  As  to  "i''C'y,  the  majority  of  commentators  treat 
it  as  equivalent  to  wicked,  but  there  is  no  reason  why  the 
'  wicked '  should  here  be  designated  as  the  rich,  nor  is  there 
any  undoubted  instance  of  this  signification  in  the  rest  of  Scrip- 
ture. The  meaning,  therefore,  appears  to  me  to  be,  that  Israel 
was  buried  with  the  wicked,  but  being  in  fact  righteous,  he 
ought  legitimately  to  have  a  mausoleum  built  over  his  tomb  as 
a  memorial  of  his  goodness,  like  those  erected  for  the  wealthy : 
'  his  mounds '  meaning  '  the  mounds  which  ought  to  have  been 
his,'  like  '  our  sicknesses,'  '  our  pains,'  above.  TW^  DDH  vb  bv, 
not  because  of  violence  that  he  had  done — for  he  did  none  what- 
ever :  the  construction  in  Job  xvi.  1 7  is  similar.  ^"  I  agree 
with  Gussetius  in  holding  "IXST  to  mean  his  bruised  one,  one 
who  had  been  bruised  by  him,  and  that  it  ought  properly  to  be 
pointed  1^3"^,  but  that  the  shwa'  api>ears  instead  of  the  qamez, 
as  in  y^lp'D,  Num.  xviii.  29,  IITTJ,  2  Sam.  xiv.  13.  ^'f''^  or  HST 
occurs  as  an  adjective,  Prov.  xxvi.  22;  and  accordingly  I  ex- 
plain here,  But  the  Lord  ivas  pleased  that  his  bruised  one  tvhom 
he  had  put  to  sickness,  if  his  soul  should  make  a  trespass- 
offering,  should  see  seed,  etc.,  the  whole  being  a  continuation  of 


-liii.  lo.]  SH'mUEL   DAVID   LUZZATTO.  423 

the  Gentiles'  words  in  the  future,  ""prin  is  the  perfect  Hifil 
from  nbn ;  it  ought  regularly  to  be  TVUT],  but  as  we  also  see 
in  D^Nlirin  (I^eut.  xxix.  21,  etc.),  it  is  here  conjugated  after  the 
analogy  of  H,''?  verbs :  the  form  is  moreover  an  Aramaic  one — 
^^:X  being  Aramaic  for  the  Hebrew  npjn :  "'jyn,  in  the  language 
of  the  Talmud,  is  similar.  '31  Q^CTl  DS,  i.  e.  if  his  soul  resigns 
itself  to  death,  as  though  it  were  a  trespass-offering  :  □'•'k^^n  sig- 
nifies 'maketh  itself,'  as  in  Judg.  ix.  23,  where  D1tt>?  is  'that  it 
might  2}icc<^^  itself  upon  Abimelech,'  etc. ;  and  again,  i  8am. 
XV.  2  ;  the  meaning  being,  that  he  would  endui'e  his  afflictions 
as  a  means  of  atoning  for  his  iniquities,  and  by  so  doing  admit 
the  justice  of  God's  sentence  against  him.  After  this,  though 
he  was  still  in  exile,  the  Lord  was  pleased  that  he  should  see 
seed,  and  prolong  his  days,  not  perishing  in  any  way  until  at 
length  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord  shoidd  prosi^er  in  his  hand — his 
pleasure  being,  that  the  nations  should  be  converted  to  the 
knowledge  of  his  unity  and  to  his  worship  :  for  this  will  be  the 
consequence  of  the  signs  and  wonders  which  he  will  perform 
for  Israel  in  their  future  redemption.  Here  end  the  words  of 
the  Gentiles,  and  their  confession  that  Israel's  sufferings  whilst 
in  exile  were  not  in  accordance  with  justice ;  that,  in  fact,  it 
was  they  themselves  who  had  rather  been  deserving  of  punish- 
ment, and  that  through  Israel's  merits  in  acquiescing  in  their 
afflictions  as  just,  God  had  preserved  them  and  perpetuated 
their  existence  until  the  time  of  their  deliverance  should  arrive, 
which  would  be  for  the  benefit  of  the  whole  world.  Rosenmiiller  and 
the  commentators  explain  1N3T  as  equivalent  to  IXDl?  ('  to  bruise 
him'):  it  is  singular,  however,  that  God  should  be  described  as 
'being  pleased'  in  the  affliction  of  his  righteous  servant:  the 
prophet  ought  rather  to  have  written,  *  Yet  the  Lord  com- 
manded to  In'uise  him,'  for  )'2n  does  not  express  merely  '  will,' 
but  is  used  of  what  a  man  Avills  with  satisfaction  or  delight,  as 
in  Ezek.  xviii.  23,  'Do  I  take  pleasure  in,  or  desire,  the  death 
of  the  wicked?'  Moreover,  the  conjunction  is  absent  before 
vnn,  though,  according  to  this  opinion,  the  sense  must  be,  '  was 


4'24  sh'miel  davu)  i.c/./atto.  [liil.  lo- 

])leased  to  l)riii.se  hiin,  and  put  him  to  sickness.'  Gesenius 
took  ^X3T  as  a  substantive,  tlie  Dcujesh  being  euphonic,  signify- 
ing '  his  bruising,'  rendering  '  But  the  Lord  desired  and  made 
grievous  his  bruising,  or  affliction,' — npnn,  to  make  sick  or 
grievous,  as  Mic.  vi.  13,  Jer.  xiv.  17:  the  conjunction,  however, 
is  still  wanting,  and  the  statement  that  the  Almighty  has 
])leasure  in  the  sufferings  of  the  just  still  remains.  Ui)on  my 
explanation  the  relative  is  omitted  after  }>sn,  as  in  Isaiah  xlii.  21, 
'It  pleased  the  Lord  that  he  should  magnify  the  law;'  it  is 
likewise  omitted  after  1N31,  '  his  bruised  one  wliom  he  put  to 
sickness,'  as  in  Is.  li.  1 2,  *  from  man  that  dieth,'  and  frequently. 
The  DK'N  ('  trespass-offering ')  is  understood  by  Rosenmiiller 
and  Gesenius  (who  appeal  to  verse  4)  to  allude  to  the  atone- 
ment made  by  him  for  the  nations :  this  however  cannot  be ; 
for  although  they  say  there  '  he  carried  our  sicknesses,'  because 
the  calamities  which  ought  to  have  come  upon  them  came  upon 
Israel,  yet  how  could  they  say  that  Israel  gave  himself  to  make 
atonement  for  them  1  for  the  Israelites  in  suffering  have  surely 
no  such  intention  as  this,  nor  is  it  at  all  within  their  cognizance 
that  their  afflictions  will  be  for  the  advantage  of  other  nations. 
There  is  another  reason  also  why  this  view  must  be  false :  we 
find  the  'trespass-offering'  spoken  of  as  an  atonement  for  the 
individual  presenting  it,  never  for  other  people  :  indeed,  the 
fundamental  idea  denoted  by  the  root  is  that  of  repentance,  but 
bow  could  Reuben  'repent'  for  the  sins  of  Simeon'?  atonement 
for  other  persons  is  described  as  a  'ransom'  or  'redemption,' 
but  never  as  a  'trespass -offering.'  He  shall  see  seed,  etc.;  by 
Rosenmidler,  Gesenius,  and  the  commentators  generally,  this  is 
referred  to  the  period  following  the  Deliverance :  but  it  is  un- 
likely that  the  Deliverance  should  be  indicated  by  terms  not 
one  of  which  transcends  the  limits  of  ordinary  physical  phe- 
nomena. My  explanation  connects  the  words  with  the  period 
of  exile.  The  Septuagint  and  Yonatlian,  from  the  Aramaic 
sense  of  the  root — "^ilD  becomes  '';d*1  in  the  Targum — render 
1ND1,  'to  purify  him  ;'  and  it  would  .seem  that  this  was  also  the 


-liil.  II.]  sh'muel  DAVID  r.rz/.AiTO.  425 

view  of  Rasbi.  But  the  root  N3T  or  n3T  never  occurs  witli  this 
meaning  through  the  whole  course  of  Scripture  :  in  its  stead 
we  find  the  root  n3T,  which  in  Aramaic  changes  its  T  into  H,  like 
IDT,  "131 ".  R.  Me'ir  Obernik  and  R.  J.  S.  Reggio  take  the  first 
words  of  this  verse  as  an  exchimation  :  '  And  that  the  Lord 
ehould  be  pleased  to  bruise  him,  and  put  him  to  sickness  for 
ever  !  Nay ;  but  after  he  has  resigned  himself  as  a  trespass- 
offering,  he  shall  see  seed,'  etc.  :  upon  this  explanation,  how- 
ever, it  seems  that  |*3n  should  have  been  the  future  tense,  and 
not  the  past,  as  Judg.  xi.  23,  Is.  xxxvii.  11,  'And  that  thou 
shouldest  be  delivered  !'  Finally,  from  the  expression  used 
here, '  shall  have  long  days,'  after  the  language  of  verse  9,  *  Made 
his  grave  with  the  wicked,'  which  implies  that  he  was  already 
dead,  it  is  evident  that  the  subject  of  the  prophecy  cannot  be  a 
single  man,  but  must  be  the  nation  :  to  this  some  reply  by  ren- 
dering '  shall  see  seed,  tohich  will  have  long  days,'  although  he 
himself  will  have  perished  ;  but  it  will  be  plain,  from  what  I 
shall  say  on  the  next  verse,  the  words  do  not  mean  this.  ^^  The 
Almighty  begins  here  to  speak.  Away  from  the  travail  of  his 
soul:  so  Gesenius,  |JD  having  much  the  same  force  as  that  which 
I  assigned  to  it  above  on  verse  8  ;  on  this  meaning  of  the  word, 
Gussetius  remarks  that  similarly  in  Latin  absque,  'without,'  is 
derived  from  a,  ah,  'from.'  y3D"  ^X"1^  i.e.  he  shall  see  seed,  lie 
shall  have  his  Jill  of  days  (so  also,  as  I  find  now,  Abarbanel) : 
the  Gentiles  having  just  previously  used  similar  language,  the 
Almighty  here  confirms  the  i^romise  definitely  for  the  future, 
saying.  If  even  hitherto  he  has  been  seeing  seed  and  having  long 
life  in  return  for  what  he  endured  in  exile,  henceforth  he  shall 
be  released  from  the  travail  of  his  soul,  and  shall  yet  again  '  see ' 
seed  and  '  be  satisfied '  with  life.  'Ibn  'Ezra  and  Qamhi  ex- 
plain:  He  shall  see  prosperity  so  as  to  be  satisfied  therewith; 
but  this  misses  the  principal  point.  Rosenmiiller  renders,  He 
shall  see,  i.  e.  obtain,  his  needs  so  as  to  be  satisfied  therewith  : 

K  The  paraphrase  of  Ilashi  is  2'.:io?   iTinn?;  cf.  p.  39. 


426  Sh'mUEL    DAVID    LUZZATTO.  [liii.  II- 

and  Gesenius,  He  shall  be  satisfied  with  that  •which  he  shall 
see.  By  fm  knowledge,  i.  e.  his  '  wisdom  and  righteousness  and 
fear  of  the  Lord;'  as  in  Mai.  ii.  7,  'The  V\])S  of  the  priest  keep 
knowledge,'  Job  xxxvi.  12,  Prov.  xxii.  12,  'The  eyes  of  the  Lord 
preserve  knoivledge,'  i.  e.  they  preserve  the  man  of  knowledge, 
the  'just  man  which  feareth  the  Lord;'  Hos.  iv.  6,  '  Because  thou 
hast  rejected  knowledge,'  etc.  :  in  all  these  passages,  by  '  know- 
ledge '  is  denoted  a  righteous  and  religious  spirit,  for  knowledge 
is  equivalent  to  wisdom,  and  wisdom  is  generally  in  Holy  Writ 
synonymous  with  a  cultivation  of  the  ways  of  righteousness 
and  the  fear  of  God ;  for  '  the  beginning  of  wisdom  is  the  fear 
of  the  Lord,'  and  '  the  fear  of  the  Lord  is  the  beginning  of 
knowledge.'  With  these  words,  Bi/  his  knowledge,  a  new  sen- 
tence commences  :  the  preceding  words,  Atvay  frovi  the  travail, 
etc.,  were  merely  the  counterpai't  to  what  the  Gentiles  had 
spoken  previously,  He  shall  see  seed,  etc.  Here,  then,  the  pro- 
phet begins  to  recount  the  praises  of  Israel  in  the  days  of  their 
exile,  declaring  how  my  servant  Israel,  by  the  divine  knowledge 
that  was  then  in  \\im,  jxistijied  the  Just  One,  i.  e.  acknowledged 
the  justice  of  God's  sentence  upon  him,  confessing  '  the  Lord  is 
righteous,  for  I  have  rebelled  against  his  commandment.'  My 
servant  unto  many  justified  the  Just  One,  for  such  was  his 
wont,  at  the  time  when  he  was  a  servant  unto  many,  being  sub- 
jected to  rulers  and  dignitaries ;  and  hare  their  iniquities,  i.  e. 
bare  all  the  acts  of  wickedness  which  they  committed  against 
him.  The  commentators  refer  the  verse  to  the  period  subse- 
quent to  the  Deliverance ;  but  this  cannot  be  on  account  of  the 
phrase  'bare  their  iniquities,'  which  can  only  apply  to  the  time 
of  exile.  Kosenmiiller,  Martini,  Hensler,  and  others  explain, 
'  He  that  bare  their  iniquities  in  his  exile  will  justify  many  after 
his  deliverance '  (so  likewise  Abarbanel),  in  spite  of  the  fact  that 
they  ill-used  him  and  he  eudui-ed  their  wickedness  during  the 
exile :  indeed,  this  view  is  altogether  very  far-fetched.  Gesenius 
supposed  the  words  to  mean,  that  even  after  the  Deliverance  he 
would  bear   their   iniquities,  viz.   by   restoring  them   to  pros- 


-liii.  12.]  SIl'aiUEL   DAVID    LUZZATTO.  427 

perity ;  but  this  is  more  improbable  still.  Rashi  understands 
tliem  to  refer  to  the  exile,  supposing  that  he  'justified  many' 
when  he  judged  truthfully  all  who  came  to  be  tried  before  him. 
'Ibu  'Ezra,  Qamhi,  Abarbanel,  Rosenmiiller,  and  Gesenius  ren- 
der, '  The  just  one,  my  servant,  will  justify — or  make  right- 
eous— many,'  by  bringing  them,  viz.,  to  the  service  of  God  ;  but 
in  this  case  there  is  a  difficulty  from  the  7  in  D''3"i7,  and  also 
from  the  collocation  n3y  pnv.  Lastly,  R.  IVIe'ir  Obernik  and 
the  learned  R.  J.  S.  Reggio,  while  referring  the  clause  to 
the  time  of  exile,  explain  thus  :  My  servant  shall  have  his  fill 
of  ti-avail  and  sorrow  during  exile;  but  by  his  knowledge  he 
Avill  justify  himself  in  his  heart,  i.  e.  he  will  feel  himself  to  le 
just,  and  on  this  account  he  will  bear  their  iniquities :  but  in 
this  exposition  the  language  of  the  text  is  not  expressed  with 
sufficient  accuracy.  ^^  Therefore  I  will  do  this  to  him  after  his 
redemption :  /  will  divide  him  a  portion  with  the  (jreat,  I  will 
make  his  portion  equal  to  that  enjoyed  by  the  rulers  and  nobles 
to  whom  previously  he  was  in  subjection  (De  Wette  and  Ge- 
senius) ;  and  with  (Gesenius),  i,  e.  like,  tlie  mighty  (as  above, 
'  toith  i.  e.  like  the  wicked,'  verse  9)  he  shall  divide  spoil,  for 
he  will  be  great  and  honourable  in  the  eyes  of  the  nations,  and 
they  will  honour  him  with  presents  and  tribute ;  and  should  any 
nation  refuse  to  do  so,  and  attempt  to  harm  him,  then  he  will 
fight  against  that  nation  and  take  its  spoil.  The  pi'ophet  says 
both,  '  I  will  divide '  and  '  he  shall  divide,'  using  the  same  word 
Avith  a  double  meaning  as  an  elegancy  of  style.  'Ibn  'Ezra, 
Qamhi,  Abarbanel,  and  Rosenmiiller  explain,  '  I  will  divide  him 
a  portion  of  many  nations,  and  mighty  nations  he  shall  divide 
as  spoil ;'  but  this  does  not  express  it  clearly.  R.  Me'ir  Ober- 
nik and  R.  J.  S.  Reggio  render,  'I  will  divide  him  a  portion 
amongst  many,'  i.  e.  I  will  give  him  his  reward  openly  before 
the  eyes  of  the  whole  world  :  though  D^213,  however,  might  bear 
such  a  sense  in  the  language  of  the  Talmud,  it  could  not  in 
Biblical  Hebrew  :  even  the  D''J3"l^y  following  is  a  proof  that 
D^ai  nuist  signify  great  or  mighty,     myn.  laid  bare  (as  Lev. 


428  SH'mUEL    DAVID    LUZZATTO.  [liii.  12. 

XX.  1 8),  accordiug  to  an  anonymous  commentator  cited  by  'Ibn 
'Ezra,  the  meaning  being  that  he  did  not  withhold  his  soul  from 
deatli,  did  not  seek  to  rescue  his  life  at  the  cost  of  changing  his 
religion.  All  other  expositors  interpret  poured  out,  as  Gen. 
xxiv.  20,  Ps.  cxli.  8  :  this  however  seems  to  me  improbable,  for 
Israel  never  'jjoured  out'  his  soul.  And  ivas  numbered  ivith 
the  transgressors,  submitted  to  the  indignity  of  being  called  one, 
because  of  his  adherence  to  the  faith  of  his  fathers.  This  ex- 
pression forms  a  strong  argument  against  those  who  assert  the 
'  servant  of  the  Lord '  to  be  either  an  individual  prophet  or  the 
proj)hets  collectively;  for  the  prophets  are  never  reckoned  as 
ti'ansgressors ;  on  the  contrary,  the  transgressors  hate  them  for 
the  severity  of  their  rebukes.  And  made  intercession  for  the 
transgressors,  yasn,  as  Jer.  xxxvi.  25  :  so  'Ibn  'Ezra,  Qamlii, 
Abarbanel,  and  Gesenius :  this  clause  shews  that  the  one  follow- 
ing must  signify  that  he  forgave  the  sin  of  his  oppressors — NK'J 
having  the  same  force  as  inExod.  xxxiv,  7,  x.  17,  Gen.  1.  17,  and 
elsewhere ;  if  this  be  not  admitted,  the  two  clauses  are  entirely 
devoid  of  connexion.  We  now  understand  through  what  kind 
of  merit  Israel  will  be  redeemed  :  it  will  be  through  their  own 
merits  in  the  endurance  of  sufferings  and  death,  in  forgiving 
their  persecutors,  and  in  praying  for  them,  as  though  to  shew 
that  they  loved  the  nations,  and  although  they  rewarded  them 
evil,  still  bare  no  ill-will  towards  them. 


LI.    THE   CLEAR   FOUNTAIN. 


Isaiah  has  also  prophesied  in  the  fifty-third  chapter  about  the 
opinions  of  the  Christians  (Edoni),  the  oppressors  of  Israel. 
They  falsely  apply  the  prophecy  beginning  Who  believed  our 
report  ?  to  the  martyrdom  of  Jesus,  but  it  really  refers  to  Israel, 
stricken  by  all  nations,  past  and  present,  viz.  Babylonians,  Per- 
sians, Greeks,  and  Romans,  which  latter  became  the  Christians. 
This  is  to  be  seen  clearly  from  the  fifty-second  chapter,  which  is 
connected  with  the  following  one.  The  error  of  the  Christian 
doctors  is  the  consequence  of  their  taking  the  expressiom  my 
servant  (lii.  13)  as  a  real  singular,  whereas  it  is  a  collective 
singular,  refen-ing  to  Jacob  and  Israel.  God  said  by  the  mouth 
of  his  prophet  Moses  that  he  would  bring  the  curses  which 
Israel  suffered  in  the  land  of  their  enemies  and  haters  on  the 
latter  when  Israel  turns  back  from  his  wicked  ways  (Deut.  xxx. 
1-3).  Isaiah  prophesies  the  same  (li.  22,  23),  and  promises 
redemption  to  the  humiliated  people,  saying,  Behold  my  ser- 
vant Jacob  and  my  people  Israel,  who  laid  down  his  body  as  a 
pavement  for  the  passers  by,  shall  he  prosperous,  exalted,  and 
extolled,  and  raised  very  high.  The  prophet  means  to  indi- 
cate by  these  three  degrees  of  exaltation  that  the  elevation  of 
trodden  Israel  will  be  greater  than  its  abasement  was  low  in 
past  and  present  days,  for  God  shall  have  taken  away  from 
them  the  cup  of  the  dregs  and  of  his  fury,  and  put  it  into  the 
hands  of  his  oppressors  (li.  22,  23).     '^  And  the  nations  seeing 


430  THE    CLEAR    FOUNTAIN.  [liii.  i- 

such  a  wonderful  redemption  of  a  people  so  abased,  the  pro- 
phet says,  As  many  were  astonished  at  thee,  etc.  It  may  be 
seen  how  this  designation  my  servant  is  a  collective  singular, 
because  it  says  w/uit  was  not  told  them,  them  in  the  plural 
number  referring  to  Israel. 

LIII.  '  Then,  astonished,  they  will  say,  Who  hath  believed  our 
report  ?  which  we  have  heard  from  men  believing  in  our  peace, 
viz.  our  Messiah,  the  messenger  of  God  to  the  nations.  Per- 
suaded by  the  twelve  men  (the  apostles),  we  Edomites  made 
war  against  Israel  and  the  law  of  Moses,  but  now  upon  whom 
lias  tlte  arm  of  the  Lord  been  revealed  ?  ^  The  Christian  ex- 
positors apply  the  contents  of  this  verse  to  Jesus,  who  was  con- 
ceived without  intercourse  with  man.  This  idea,  however  (as 
we  shall  prove  by  the  help  of  God),  is  an  astonishing  blasphemy 
(Dan.  xii.  lo?).  The  prophet  speaks  here  also  of  Isi'ael  abased, 
humiliate!,  avoided,  mart}Ted,  and  spoiled  by  all  nations,  grow- 
ing up  before  the  providence  of  God  like  a  bi'anch  and  a  root  out 
of  a  dry  land  in  consequence  of  their  sins  (Jer.  xvii.  5-8).  Isaiah 
(xliv.  I,  2)  uses'^  for  the  present  exile  the  expression  'dryness,' 
and  for  the  humiliated  people  '  roots  in  a  dry  land ; '  in  the  time 
when  God  shall  pour  out  waters  upon  dryness  and  upon  roots  in 
a  dry  land  and  his  blessing  upon  his  children,  then  that  tvhich 
was  not  told  them  they  shall  see,  and  what  they  have  not  heard 
they  shall  understand.  Who  has  believed  ?  etc.  Dispersed  Israel 
is  called  a  root  in  a  dry  land,  as  compared  with  other  nations 
who  have  a  king  and  possess  a  country.  Micah  also  compares 
the  providence  of  God  to  grass  and  drops  falling  upon  it  in  time 
of  drought  (v.  7),  by  which  providence  Israel  was  presei'ved 
among  all  other  nations  more  wondrously  than  in  Egypt. 
Where  are  now  the  Assyrians,  the  Babylonians,  and  the  Per- 
sians, with  their  different  religions  1  They  were  mixed  up  in 
the  time  of  drought  with  other  nations,  and  disappeared.     Jere- 


»  By  the  word  'womb'  in  the  passage  Israel  is  compared  to  a  woman  in 
labour  liopinc;  for  the  assistan<'o  of  God. 


-Hii.  5.]  THE    CLEAR    FOUNTAIN.  431 

miali  (xxx.  11),  as  well  as  Hosea  (ii.  3  and  iii.  4),  both  allude 
to  the  above-mentioned  pei'iod  of  drought.  Isaiah  continues  : 
He  hath  no  form,  for  he  grows  in  the  present  exile  as  a  root  in  a 
dry  land.  ^Despised  and  rejected  of  men,  as  was  always  the  case 
with  scattered  Israel.  As  hiding  their  /aces  from  the  despised 
one.  And  toe  esteemed  him  not,  the  nations  will  saj',  Wlio  would 
have  believed  that  the  arm  of  the  Lord  would  reveal  itself  to  a 
nation  despised  and  rejected  of  men,  which  covered  its  face, 
from  which  everybody  kept  aloof,  as  from  a  wounded  man,  and 
which  is  acquainted  with  sickness,  i.  e.  with  being  despised 
and  humiliated  by  all  nations,  past  and  present.  The  fame  of 
this  wonderful  redemption  will  even  reach  the  inhabitants  of 
Cusli  (xviii.  1-3).  *  The  sufferings  which  we  ought  to  have 
borne,  as  evildoers  persuaded  by  our  teachers  (Obad.  i,  2), 
Israel  bore,  which  is  even  the  case  in  our  days,  when  Israel 
suffers  humiliation,  death,  and  destruction  for  supporting  the 
holy  law,  whilst  the  nations  support  blasphemies.  Yet  we  es- 
teemed him,  stricken,  smitten  of  God.  This  the  nations  repeat 
even  in  our  own  days,  saying  that  Israel  is  smitten  of  God 
because  they  put  to  death  their  God  and  Messiah  and  did  not 
believe  in  him,  but  finally  they  will  say,  Who  hath  believed  ?  etc. 
(p.  430).  The  same  was  the  case  in  Egypt,  when  the  magicians 
said  (Exod.  viii.  19),  'It  is  the  finger  of  God,'  whilst  later  they 
were  obliged  to  confess  that  God  was  fighting  for  Israel  ('  finger ' 
refers  to  a  single  nation,  whilst  of  Christendom  as  a  whole  the 
word  '  arm '  is  used).  ^  We  were  mistaken  in  believing  that 
God  smote  him  for  his  sins,  since  in  reality  it  was  our  sins 
whicli  caused  his  humiliation.  In  fact,  the  cup  of  trembling 
and  of  fury  which  was  destined  for  him,  according  to  the  words 
of  God,  was  put  into  our  hands  (li.  22).  The  chastisement  which 
we  deserved  for  our  peace,  i.  e.  for  the  Messiah,  who  is  called 
Prince  of  peace  (ix.  6),  and  at  whose  coming  universal  peace 
ought  to  have  been  established,  came  upon  Israel.  With  his 
stnpes  we  are  healed,  i.  e.  Israel  was  healed  for  the  sake  of  the 
stripes  which   he  received  from  us.     Thus  the  proj)hct   says 


432  TirE  ir,EAii  fointain.  [liii.  6- 

further  on  (ver.  lo),  If  thou  shall  viake  his  soul,  etc.  If  we  take  it 
ill  the  sense  of  tlie  Christian  interpietei's,  by  his  t^trijjes  ice  were 
healed,  then  the  nations  confess  in  amazement  that  when  Israel 
drinks  the  cup  of  trembling  and  of  fury  they  are  healed,  for  the 
rod  and  the  staff  with  which  God  chastises  his  people  ai'e  neces- 
sarily during  tlie  time  of  tlicir  chastising  prosperous  (x.  6,  7). 
In  fact,  Israel  suffers  oppression  from  the  Christians  who  are 
healed  by  those  suflmngs.  The  prophet  explains  this  fact  in 
X.  12,  where  Assyria  represents  Israel's  enemy;  and  to  this 
allusion  is  made  in  Psalm  xciv.  i  (where  vengeance  refers  to  the 
redemption),  12,  14.  '^  All  we  like  sheep,  etc.  At  the  beginning 
there  were  Ariaus  and  Catholics,  now  there  are  Calvinists  and 
[Lutherans],  so  that  everybody  turns  to  his  own  way  (Jer.  xlix.  7  f). 
Then  the  nations,  amazed  at  such  a  great  salvation,  will  exclaim, 
The  Lord  hath  laid  on  him  the  iniquity  of  as  all.  Isaiah  alludes 
to  those  sects,  saying,  '  Through  the  wrath  of  the  Lord  of  hosts 
is  the  land  darkened '  (ix.  1 8),  i.  e.  in  consequence  of  those  dif- 
ferent sects  and  opinions  which  the  prophet  calls  '  darkness.' 
For  in  darkness  every  one  turns  his  own  way,  and  the  same  is 
the  case  when  people  are  blind  in  understanding.  ''He  was 
oppressed,  etc.  This  is  the  case  now  with  the  inquisition,  when 
Israel  is  brought  to  the  funeral  pile,  if  they  try  to  speak,  a  gag 
is  put  on  their  tongue.  '^  From  jprison  and  from  judgment,  etc. 
"ivy  is  employed  by  the  prophets  in  a  good  and  a  bad  sense.  In 
a  good  sense  of  the  last  days  of  the  Passover  (Amos  v.  22),  and 
in  a  bad  sense  of  mourning  (Joel  i.  1 3).  Here  we  take  it  in  the 
latter  sense,  i.  e.  the  nations,  amazed  at  the  great  redemption, 
will  say.  Who  hath  believed  our  report  ?  etc.,  that  Israel  will  be 
brought  by  us  in  chariots  to  the  house  of  God,  and  taken  away 
from  their  state  of  depression  and  the  judgment  which  God  had 
pronounced  against  them  in  the  day  of  his  wrath  (Is.  xviii.  7, 
Zech.  viii.  22,  Is.  xlix.  7,  and  Jer.  xvi.  19).  Thus  the  prophet 
continues,  his  generation,  etc.  In  the  former  redemptions  Israel 
was  counted  by  tribes  and  families,  but  in  the  present  redemp- 
tion God  alone  will  be  able  to  count  and  distinguish  the  families, 


-liii.  12.]  THE    CLEAR   EOUNTATN.  433 

i.  e.  God  will  not  choose  his  priests  and  Levites  from  the  other 
nations,  as  pretended  by  those  who  bring  Israel  to  the  house  of 
God,  saying  that  Israel  is  mixed  up  with  them,  but  he  will  dis- 
tinguish and  choose  them  from  Israel  alone.  He  was  cut  off 
from  the  land  of  the  living,  i.  e.  from  the  holy  land  (Ezek, 
xxxii.  23).  For  the  transgression  of  my  people,  etc.,  i.  e.  for 
the  transgression  of  the  fathers  the  children  suffer  at  the  pre- 
sent time  {Lam.  v.  7).  To  him  (ID?)  is  a  collective  singular, 
referring  to  Israel,  and  not  to  the  Messiah  of  the  nations.  '  He 
made  his  grave,  etc.,  i.  e.  the  nations  called  Israel,  who  died  for 
the  law  and  the  holy  name  of  God,  and  who  are  rich,  i.  e.  who 
possess  many  virtues,  heretics  and  evildoers,  and  they  make  in 
consequence  their  grave  amongst  the  wicked  (Dan.  xi.  32-34), 
which  is  indeed  the  case  in  this  long  exile.  And  all  that,  says 
the  prophet,  because  he  had  not  acted  falsely  in  regard  to  the 
law  of  God,  for  which  Israel  always  was  and  is  now  repri- 
manded, and  there  ivas  no  deceit  in  their  mouth.  They  always 
considered  Jesus  as  an  enticer,  and  consequently  subject  to 
capital  punisliment,  according  to  Deut.  xiii.  10.  The  nations, 
on  seeing  the  redemption  of  those  whom  they  called  heretics 
and  evildoers,  but  who  are  ricli  in  great  virtues,  etc.,  will  ex- 
claim, Who  hath  believed  our  report  ?  etc.  '°  If,  persevering  in 
the  law  of  God,  he  accepts  patiently  the  chastisement  as  a  cor- 
rection for  his  sins,  he  will  see  seed,  etc.  '^  For  the  trouble  of 
his  soul,  etc.,  i.  e.  he  will  say  to  himself.  Drink  the  cup  of 
trembling,  etc.;  bow  down  that  they  may  pass,  etc.  (li.  22,  23)''. 
By  his  knowledge  shall  my  righteous  servant  Israel  justify  many, 
i.  e.  on  seeing  the  great  redemption  the  justified  ones  will  con- 
fess. Surely  he  has  borne  the  gi'iefs  which  we  deserved,  etc. 
(Jer.  xvi.  19,  20).  These  passages  prove  clearly  that  Israel  will 
be  justified  by  their  confidence  in  God  and  by  their  martyrdom, 
but  not  by  that  of  the  jiretendcd  ]\Iessia]i.  '-  Therefore  I  will  di- 
vide, etc.  King  David  instituted  a  lav/  (i  hJam.  xxx.  24),  according 

''  This  passage  is  totally  corrupt ;  sec  the  text,  p.  380. 

rf 


434  THE    CLEAR   FOUNTAIN.  [Hii.  12. 

to  whlcTi  the  spoil  was  equally  divided  amongst  those  who  were 
the  \nctors  and  those  who  guarded  the  town.  The  prophet  says 
accordingly  that  tliose  who  fight  for  the  law  of  God  and  die  for  it, 
have  the  same  part  of  reward  as  those  whose  souls  fight  against 
the  hody  for  the  sake  of  the  law.  Therefore  he  will  divide  spoil 
with  many  and  the  strong  who  guarded  the  city,  i.  e.  the  law  of 
God;  for  the  martyred  people  poured  out  its  soul  unto  death 
and  was  numhercd  with  the  transgi-essors. 

The  Christians  apply  all  this  to  their  Messiah,  which  is 
proved  false  Ity  the  following  affirmative  condition,  which  re- 
quires necessarily  a  negative  one.  The  prophet  says,  If  lie  offer 
his  soul  as  a  trespass-offering  he  will  see  seed,  etc.,  consequently, 
if  he  does  not  offer  his  soul  as  a  trespass-offering,  he  will  not 
see  seed,  etc.  How  is  it  possible  to  apply  this  to  a  man  whom 
the  nations  adore  as  God-man  and  the  son  of  God,  who  con- 
sequently lives  and  rules  with  God  ?  What  an  unintelligible 
story  all  that  is !  The  prophet  says  he,  Israel  my  servant,  spoiled 
by  many,  bore  in  past  time  and  endures  now  the  chastisement 
which  the  nations,  who  are  their  rod,  deserved  on  account  of 
their  blasphemies  against  God  in  falsely  interpreting  the  words 
of  the  prophets.  Israel  does  not  dare  answer,  for  they  are 
brought  as  a  lamb  to  the  slaughter,  etc.  The  ])ro])het  means  to 
imply  that  Isi-ael  suffers  also  in  the  present  exile  for  the  sin  of 
their  fathers,  with  whom  they  will  divide  the  spoil.  Israel  prays 
for  the  welfare  of  the  nations  under  whose  rule  they  live.  This 
God  commanded  by  his  prophet  Jeremiah  (xxix.  7).  The  na- 
tions, amazed  at  this  great  redemption,  will  exclaim,  Who  hath 
believed  our  report  ?  etc.,  that  the  abased  and  humiliated  people 
will  pray  for  us.  Thus  we  have  established  the  meaning  of 
Isaiah's  prophecy  in  this  chapter,  out  of  which  the  Christians 
make  the  greatest  effort  to  prove  that  their  Messiah  suffered  for 
the  sins  of  all  the  nations.  It  would  indeed  be  a  false  inter- 
pretation which  does  not  apply  this  chapter  to  Israel  humiliated 
and  martyred  by  all  nations,  past  and  present.  If  any  one  ob- 
jects, saying,  How  is  it  possible  that  the  prophets  should  not 


liii.  12.]  THE    CT.EAll   FOrXTAlN.  435 

have  prophesied  with  regard  to  that  Jew  killed  and  martyred, 
adored  for  such  a  long  time  by  all  nations  as  God  and  Messiah, 
we  have  only  to  say  that  Isaiah,  as  well  as  Daniel,  has  clearly 
prophesied  concerning  him.  This  will  be  the  subject  of  the 
following  chapter  of  our  book. 


rf  2 


A.    ABRAHAM    GUER    OF   CORDOVA*. 


B.     R.  MANAS SEH   BEN   ISRAEL. 
Question  XXIII. 

Isaiah  liii.  4.     Verily  he  bare  our  Ezekiel  xviii.  20.     The  soul  that 

sicknesses,  and  suffered  our  suffer-  sinneth  it  shall  die.  The  son  shall 
ings.  12.  And  he  bare  the  sin  of  not  bear  the  iniquity  of  the  father, 
many.  neither    shall    the    father    bear   the 

iniquity  of  the  son,  &c. 

If  this  chapter  is  to  be  interpreted  of  the  people  of  Israel, 
how  comes  Isaiah  to  say  that  it  bare  the  sin  of  many,  whereas 
every  one  (according  to  the  testimony  of  Ezekiel)  pays  only  for 
his  own  guilt  ? 

Reconciliation. 

The  subject  of  this  question  demands  long  argument,  and  for 
our  verses  to  be  perfectly  understood  it  will  be  necessary  to 
explain  the  whole  of  the  chapter,  which  we  shall  do  with  all 
possible  brevity,  without  starting  any  objections  which  may  be 
made  against  other  expositions,  as  our  intention  is  solely  to 
shew  what  our  own  opinion  is.  Accordingly  for  greater  clear- 
ness I  shall  set  down  the  literal  text  with  a  paraphrase  of  my 
own,  and  then  illustrate  it  by  notes. 

Isaiah  prophesies — I.  The  extreme  prosperity  of  Israel  at  the 
time  of  the  Messiah.  II.  The  wonder  of  all  the  nations  at 
seeing  them  rise  from  such  a  low  state  to  grandeur.  III.  How 
they  will  perceive  their  mistake,  acknowledging  themselves  to 

<-  See  No.  XXXIX,  p.  290. 


lii.  13-liii.  a.]  R.  MANASSEH    BEN    ISRAEL. 


437 


be  the  sinners  and  Israel  to  be  innocent.  IV.  What  they  will 
think  of  their  various  sects.  V.  The  patience  of  the  people 
in  suffering  the  troubles  of  the  captivity ;  and  the  reward  they 
will  receive  for  their  suffering. 


Literal  Translation. 
Behold,    my    servant    shall 
prosper,  he   shall   be   exalted, 
and    shall    be    extolled,    and 
shall  be  raised  very  high. 

As  many  were  astonished  at 
thee,  his  visage  was  so  marred 
more  than  any  man,  and  his 
form  more  than  the  sons  of 
man  : 

So  he  will  cause  many  na- 
tions to  speak;  kings  shall 
shut  their  mouths  at  him ; 
what  had  not  been  told  them 
they  shall  see  ;  and  what  they 
had  not  heard  they  shall  un- 
derstand. 

Who  will  believe  our  report? 
and  upon  whom  hath  the  arm 
of  Adonai  been  manifested  ? 


And  he  came  uji  before  him 
as  a  branch,  and  as  a  root  out 
of  a  dry  ground ;  he  had  no 
form  nor  comeliness ;   and  we 


Paraphrase. 

Behold    my   servant    Israel  Hi.  13 
shall  understand  :  he  shall  be 
exalted,    extolled,    and    raised 
very  high,   at   the  coming  of 
the  Messiah. 

As  many  of  the  nations  were  14 
astonished  at  thee,  0  Israel, 
saying  at  the  time  of  the  cap- 
tivity. Truly  he  is  disfigured 
above  all  mankind  in  his  coun- 
tenance and  form : 

So  at  that  time  they  shall  15 
speak  of  thy  grandeur ;  even 
kings  themselves  shall  shut 
their  mouths  in  astonishment : 
for  what  they  had  never  been 
told  they  shall  see,  and  what 
they  had  not  heard  they  shall 
understand. 

Who  would  have  believed  liii.  i 
(the  nations  will  say)  what  we 
see,  had  it  been  related  to 
them  1  And  look  upon  what 
a  vile  nation  the  arm  of  the 
Lord  has  manifested  itself. 

He    came    up    miraculouslj-  2 
as  a  branch  and  a  root  out  of 
a  dry  ground,   for  he  had  no 
form  nor  comeliness  :    we  saw 


438 


K.  M.VNASSEII    BEN    ISllAEI,. 


[liii-  3- 


saw  him,  and  there  was  no 
ajipeai'auce  that  we  should 
covet  it. 

3  He  was  despised  and  rejected 
of  men,  a  man  of  sorrows,  ac- 
customed to  sickness  ;  and  as 
they  hid  their  faces  froni  him, 
lie  was  despised,  and  we  es- 
teemed him  not. 

4  Surely  he  bare  our  sick- 
nesses and  endured  our  suf- 
ferings ;  and  we  esteemed  him 
wounded,  smitten  by  God,  and 
afflicted. 


5  But  he  was  pained  by  our 
transgressions,  was  crushed  by 
our  iniquities:  the  chastise- 
ment of  our  peace  was  upon 
him,  and  by  his  wounds  we 
were  healed. 

6  All  we  like  sheep  went 
astray,  we  turned  every  one 
to  his  own  way ;  and  Adonai 
(God)  caused  the  sin  of  us  all 
to  meet  upon  him. 

7  He  was  oppressed,  and  he 
was  afflicted,  and  he  opened 
not  his  mouth  ;  he  was  carried 
as  a  latnb  to  the  slaughter  and 
was  dumb   as  a  bheep  before 


him,  but  so  hideous,  that  it 
did  not  seem  to  us  an  appear- 
ance, for  which  we  should 
envy  him. 

He  was  desjiised  and  rejected 
from  the  society  of  men,  a  man 
of  sorrows,  accustomed  to  suf- 
fer troubles  ;  we  hid  our  faces 
from  him,  he  was  despised  and 
unesteemed  among  us. 

But  now  we  see  that  the 
sicknesses  and  troubles  which 
we  ought  in  reason  to  have 
suffered,  he  suffered  and  en- 
dured, and  we  thought  that  he 
was  justly  smitten  by  God  and 
afflicted. 

Whereas  he  suffered  the 
sicknesses  and  sufferings  which 
we  deserved  for  our  sins  :  he 
bore  the  chastisement  which 
our  peace  and  felicity  deserved ; 
but  his  troubles  appear  to  have 
been  the  cure  of  ourselves. 

All  we  like  sheep  went 
astray :  we  followed  every  one 
his  own  sect,  and  so  the  Lord 
seems  to  have  transferred  oa 
liim  the  punishment  of  us 
all. 

He  was  oppressed  and  af- 
flicted :  he  was  taken  by  us  as 
a  lamb  to  the  slaughter  and 
as  a  sheep  before  its  shearers, 
depriving  him  of  life  and  pro- 


-liii.  12.] 


R.  MANASSEH    BEN    ISRAEL. 


439 


its  shearers ;    and    he    opene<l 
Dot  his  mouth. 

He  was  taken  from  impri- 
sonment and  judgment,  and 
who  shall  declare  his  genera- 
tion 1  for  he  was  cut  off  from 
the  land  of  the  living :  for  the 
transgression  of  my  people 
they  were  stricken. 


And  he  made  his  grave  with 
the  wicked,  and  with  the  rich 
in  his  deaths,  although  he  had 
not  acted  falsely  and  there  was 
no  deceit  in  his  mouth. 

And  Adonai  wished  to  crush 
him.  made  him  sick  :  if  he 
offer  his  soul  as  an  expiation, 
he  shall  see  seed,  he  shall  pro- 
long days,  and  the  will  of 
Adonai  shall  pi'osper  in  his 
hand. 


From  the  trouble  of  his  soul 
he  shall  see,  shall  be  satisfied  : 
by  his  wisdom  my  righteous 
servant  shall  justify  many : 
and  he  shall  bear  their  ini- 
quities. 

Therefore  I  will  distribute 
to  him  with  many,  and  with 
the  strong  he  shall  divide  the 


perty  :  and  he  was  dumb  and 
opened  not  his  mouth. 

From  prison  and  these  tor-  8 
meuts  he  is  now  delivered  : 
and  who  would  have  tliought 
of  this  his  happy  age  when  he 
was  banished  from  the  holy 
land  1  Through  the  wicked- 
ness of  my  people  (each  nation 
will  say)  this  blow  came  upon 
them. 

He  was  buried  with  male-  9 
factors,    and    suffered   various 
torments  with  the  rich,  without 
having    committed    crime    or 
used  deceit  with  his  mouth. 

But  it  was  the  Lord  (the  lo 
Prophet  says)  who  wished  to 
make  him  sick  and  afflict  him, 
in  order  to  purify  him  :  if  he 
offer  his  soul  as  an  expiation 
he  shall  see  seed,  he  shall  pro- 
long his  days,  and  the  will  and 
determination  of  the  Lord  shall 
prosper  in  his  hand. 

For  the  trouble  which  his  n 
soul  suffered  in  captivity,  he 
shall  see  good,  shall  be  satis- 
fied with  daj's  :  by  his  wisdom 
my  righteous  servant  Israel 
shall  justify  the  many,  and  ho 
Avill  bear  their  burdens. 

Therefore   I  will  give  him  i3 
his   share  of  spoil  among  the 
many   and    powerful    of    Gog 


440  E.  MANASSEU    BEN    ISRAEL.  [Hi.  13. 

spoil :  because  he  gave  up  his  and  Magog,  because  he  gave 
soul  unto  death,  and  was  num-  himself  up  unto  death  for  the 
bered  with  the  transgressors,  sanctification  of  my  name  ;  and 
and  he  bare  the  sin  of  many :  was  numbered  with  the  trans- 
and  he  prayed  for  the  trans-  grcssors ;  and  he  bare  the 
gressors.  offence  of  many,  even  praying 

for  the  very  transgressors  from 
whom  he  received  injuries. 

Commentary. 
LII.  "  '  Servant '  was  one  of  many  titles  of  honour  with 
which  the  blessed  God  honoured  Israel  (Is.  xli.  8,  Jer.  xxx.  10, 
Ezek.  xxxvii.  25,  Ps.  cxxxvi.  22).  And  as  the  prophet  in  this 
chapter  praises  the  fidelity  with  which  Israel,  as  loyal  servants, 
wei'e  ever  constant  in  the  service  of  the  blessed  Lord,  suffering 
innumerable  persecutions  in  this  captivity,  he  therefore  applies 
this  title  to  them  here.  Whence  it  appears  that  tlie  sole  subject 
of  this  prophecy  is  the  people  of  Israel ;  and  that  is  the  true 
meaning  of  it ;  and  the  certainty  of  this  is  further  proved  by 
its  connexion  with  the  preceding  chapter,  where  the  prophet 
says,  'Awake,  awake ;  put  on  thy  strength,  0  Zion,'  etc.  (Hi.  i-i  2)  3 
and  then  he  continues  (verse  1 3),  Behold  my  servant  shall  pros- 
per or  tcnderstand,  etc. 

It  is  seen  how  the  prophet  goes  on  with  the  same  subject,  and 
at  the  conclusion  of  this  chapter  he  still  enlarges  on  it  in  the 
following:  'Sing,  O  barren,  thou  that  didst  not  bear'  (liv.  i); 
and  continuing  this  subject  in  the  same  lofty  strain  to  the  end 
of  the  book,  he  extols  that  happy  period  loaded  with  innumera- 
ble blessings. 

This  being  taken  for  granted,  it  is  to  be  observed  that  the 
prophet  in  this  first  verse  expresses  this  supreme  state  by  these 
four  terms,  n23  XC>3  Dl'^''  y2^^,  shall  prosper  or  understand, 
shall  be  exalted,  shall  he  extolled,  and  shall  he  raised  very  hu/h, 
which  attributes  (as  Don  Isaac  Abarbanel  well  argues)  sig- 
nify those  four  pi*erogatives  and  dignities  which  the  people  of 


lii.  13.]  R.  MANASSEH    BEN    ISRAEL.  441 

Israel  enjoyed  in  their  own  country,  lost  subsequently  in  the 
captivity,  and  will  again  recover  at  the  time  of  the  Messiah. 

The  first  was  an  exact  knowledge  and  i)rofound  wisdom,  as 
Moses  says,  '  Keep  these  precepts,  for  this  is  your  wisdom  and 
understanding  in  the  sight  of  the  nations,  who  will  say,  Only 
this  nation  is  a  wise  and  understanding  people '  (Deut.  iv.  6) ; 
a  truth  confirmed  by  innumerable  writers,  who  acknowledge 
that  all  the  learning  of  the  Greeks  and  Egyptians  was  derived 
from  the  Jews ;  thus  Justin,  Theodoret,  and  Clement  of 
Alexandria  assert  that  all  the  good  the  philosophers  and  poets 
knew  was  pilfered  from  Holy  Scripture ;  for  which  reason  they 
call  Plato  the  Attic  Moses,  or  Moses  of  Athens ;  Clearchus  the 
Peripatetic  writes  of  Aristotle,  that  he  acquired  most  of  his 
learning  from  a  Jew  with  whom  he  had  much  intercourse ;  Am- 
brose says  of  Pythagoras,  that  he  was  by  birth  a  Jew,  and  like 
a  thief  robbed  them  of  innumerable  things  ;  and  Alexander  Poly- 
histor  further  says,  that  he  was  the  disciple  of  an  Assyrian 
Nazarite,  namely,  the  prophet  Ezekiel,  and  that  from  such  a 
master  came  foi'th  such  a  disciple.  Lastly,  it  is  certain  (as  I 
have  shewn  at  length  in  an  Apology  in  defence  of  the  various 
readings  of  various  books)  that  the  knowledge  of  Orpheus,  Plato, 
Anaxagoras,  P^ihagoras,  Thales  of  Miletus,  Homer,  and  also 
many  other  very  wise  men,  was  derived  from  the  clear  ocean 
of  Moses,  and  from  the  professors  and  those  who  were  learned 
in  his  most  holy  law ;  for  to  them,  according  to  the  Psalmist, 
God  revealed  his  words,  a  favour  which  he  did  not  shew  to  any 
other  nation  (Ps.  cxlvii.  19,  20). 

The  second  dignity  was  the  kingdom  of  the  house  of  David, 
the  only  empire  which  he  established.  For  all  other  princes, 
as  the  Turks,  the  Romans,  and  many  others  more  ancient,  ob- 
tained the  beginning  of  their  greatness  by  t}Tanny  and  force  of 
arms ;  but  it  was  to  David  only  that  empire  was  given  by  the 
Sovereign  Majesty,  as  the  royal  prophet  says  (Ps.  Ixxxix.  4,  5). 

The  third  was  the  gift  of  prophecy,  which  prerogative  he 
conceded  to  no  other  nation.     Moses  wished  that  he  and  the 


442  R.  MANASSEH    BEN    ISRAEL.  [Hi.  13- 

people  of  Israel  should  in  this  respect  be  different  from  all  other 
nations,  as  he  begged  of  the  Lord,  *  Let  us  be  separated,  I  and 
thy  people,  from  all  the  people  that  are  upon  the  face  of  the 
earth '  (Exod.  xxxiii.  1 6),  which  petition  was  granted  him ;  and 
so  there  was  no  other  prophet  equal  to  him,  and  no  other  nation 
possessed  the  gift  of  pro})hecy.  And  although  Balaam,  a  Gen- 
tile, prophesied,  this  is  well  known  to  have  been  quite  an 
accident,  as  is  expressed  in  the  narrative  itself,  ")p>1,  '  and  the 
Loi'd  liapptned  to  meet  Balaam '  (Num.  xxiii.  4) ;  and  this  wag 
either  for  the  greater  glory  of  Israel,  its  being  acknowledged  by 
a  Gentile,  or  for  the  condemnation  of  the  nations,  that  they 
might  not  make  it  an  excuse  that  they  had  no  prophet  to  in- 
struct them  in  the  right  way,  since  Balaam,  a  man  of  such  great 
fame  amongst  them,  predicted  to  them  all  the  successes  of 
Israel,  and  its  wonderful  and  prosperous  end  at  the  advent  of 
the  Messiah. 

Lastly,  the  fourth  prerogative  was  their  union  with  the  Divi- 
nity and  the  special  pi'ovidence  of  God.  For  although  the  Lord 
left  all  other  nations  to  the  protection  of  the  angels  and  the 
celestial  powers,  he  took  the  people  of  Israel  alone  under  his 
own  charge  and  particular  government  (Gen.  xvii.  7,  Deut. 
iv.  19,  Num.  xxiii.  9,  Deut.  xxxii.  9,  xxxiii.  29,  Ps.  cxliv.  15, 
Jer.  X.  16). 

Now,  who  is  ignorant  that  the  people  of  Israel  in  their  cap- 
tivity, being  considered  unworthy  because  of  their  ingratitude, 
have  lost  all  these  prerogatives  which  they  enjoyed  while  in  the 
favour  of  the  Lord  ?  since  now  that  j)recise  knowledge  is  lost, 
there  are  no  longer  i)rophets,  tlicy  live  deprived  of  king  and 
prince,  and  the  Lord  has  hidden  his  fiice  ft-om  them ;  but  when 
for  his  honour  he  shall  return,  when  he  shall  restore  Israel  to 
its  former  state  at  the  advent  of  the  Messiah,  the  whole  will 
again  be  recovered,  as  all  the  prophets  with  one  voice  testify.  And 
Isaiah  admirably  sums  this  up  in  the  four  words  before  us. 
For  p^aC""  is  derived  from  ?^^,  understanding,  and  signifies  that 
then  they  will  understand  jx^rfcctly,  with  profound  and  sublime 


-liii.  2.]  U.  MANASSEII    DEN    ISRAEL.  443 

wisdom.  QW,  shall  be  exalted,  is  applicable  to  the  kingdom,  as 
it  is  said  in  Numbers,  '  And  his  king  shall  be  exalted  above 
Agag'  (xxiv.  7).  NC'J,  shall  he  extolled,  is  applicable  to  the  gift 
of  prophecy,  as  it  is  said,  '  The  prophecy  (xtJ'D)  of  the  word  of 
Adonai;'  and  il2i,  shall  be  raised  very  hiyh,  represents  the  union 
and  coniiexion  with  the  Divine  Sovereign  Majesty,  whose  title 
is  nnj,  Most  High. 

'*The  prophet  addresses  himself  to  the  people,  and  shews 
that  in  the  same  manner  as  the  nations  of  the  world  wondered 
at  their  low  state  and  misfortunes,  even  going  so  far  as  to 
charge  them  with  being  disfigured,  having  a  form  unsuitable  to 
man,  and  unlike  other  mortals,  so  at  that  period  will  they  won- 
der at  their  prosperity  and  elevated  state. 

^^For  seeing  the  sudden  change  in  the  fortune  of  Israel, 
rising  from  such  extreme  meanness  to  such  extensive  empire, 
all  the  kings  of  the  earth  will  wonder  and  discourse  on  the 
subject.  And  he  gives  the  reason  of  this,  viz.  because  what 
had  never  been  told  them  of  any  nation  they  see  in  the  people 
of  Israel,  whose  grandeur  none  ever  equalled,  and  what  they  had 
never  heard  from  their  false  preachers,  they  now  understand. 
Or  IVSp''  signifies  they  will  shut  their  mouth,  speaking  with  great 
respect  and  modesty  of  that  people  which  they  had  shortly 
before  known  as  captives,  subject  to  the  will  of  their  tyrannous 
power  (Mic.  vii.  15,  16). 

LIII.  ^Who  will  believe  our  report?  etc.  explains  the  won- 
der of  the  nations.  Wlio,  they  will  say,  would  have  thought  of 
this  new  state  of  things  which  we  see  in  the  prosperity  of  Israel, 
and  that  the  arm  and  favour  of  the  Lord  would  manifest  itself 
or  act  upon  so  vile  and  mean  a  nation  ? 

^This  springing  up  has  not  been  in  the  ordinary  or  natural 
way,  but  a  prodigy ;  for  as  a  branch  from  small  beginnings 
springs  up  miraculously,  and  as  a  root  out  of  a  dry  ground, 
where  it  soon  withers,  so  we  see  him  raised  up  and  resuscitated 
from  the  death  of  the  captivity.  We  thought  he  had  no  human 
form  nor  comeliness,  and  so  we  looked  upon  him ;  moreover  we 


444  R.  MANASSEH    BEN    ISRAEL.  [liii.  3- 

considered  his  form  to  be  such  that  we  did  not  envy  it,  and 
made  no  account  of  him. 

^  His  state  was  so  mean  that  we  deemed  him  wholly  un- 
worthy of  our  society,  considering  it  disgraceful  to  hold  com- 
miuiion  with  him  (Is.  xlix.  7,  Ps.  xliv.  13).  A  man  of  sorrows, 
and  accustomed  to  sickness,  that  is,  to  suffer  the  troubles  of  the 
captivity,  compared  in  Holy  Writ  to  sicknesses  (Is.  xxx.  26, 
Jer.  xxx.  12,  Lam.  ii.  13,  Hos.  vi.  i).  And  as  hiding  tlieir 
face  1300  from  him  (or  from,  us),  we  saw  him  and  we  esteemed 
him  not.  That  is,  we  made  as  though  we  did  not  see  him,  to 
avoid  the  obligation  of  courtesy  towards  him,  which  arose  from 
the  light  consideration  we  held  him  in.  Or  it  may  also  mean, 
he  himself,  from  mere  timidity  and  mistrust,  hid  himself  from 
us.  And  there  is  no  difficulty  in  the  nation  of  Israel  being 
styled  in  this  verse  ^H,  man  of  soitows,  it  being  a  very  com- 
mon usage  in  Holy  Scripture  to  speak  of  Israel  collectively 
under  this  individual  term  (Judg.  xx.  17,  22,  xxi.  i,  i  Sam. 
xvii.  2,  etc.) 

*  We  unbelievers  more  justly  merited  the  troubles  and 
calamities  which  this  innocent  people  suffered  in  their  cai)tivity. 
But  we  were  so  blind  that  we  considered  him  to  be  wounded, 
smitten,  and  afflicted  by  God,  and  not  through  oui-selves,  and 
that  all  this  came  on  them  for  kec])ing  themselves  apart  from 
the  truth,  and  not  joining  with  us  in  our  religion. 

®  But  it  was  quite  the  contrary,  for  our  wickedness  alone  was 
the  cause  of  his  troubles ;  did  they  not  arise  from  any  hatred 
God  bore  them.  The  punishment,  "IDIO,  or  discipline  of  our 
peace  was  upon  him,  for,  as  grief  always  accompanies  pleasure, 
the  chastisement  of  this  happiness  appears  to  have  fallen  on 
him.  Or  it  may  also  mean,  when  in  the  enjoyment  of  peace 
adversaries  were  wanting,  we  immediately  turned  our  arms 
against  this  people,  and  what  we  established  for  the  discipline 
and  good  government  of  our  states,  all  redounded  in  measures 
against  him,  decrees  of  death,  banishment,  and  confiscation  of 
property,  as  experience  daily  shews.     Or  otherwise,  the  doctrine 


-liii.  8.]  R.  MANASSEIl    BEN    ISRAEL.  4 15 

[IDIO]  taught  by  our  preachers  was  that  our  tranquillity  de- 
pended on  our  being  irritated  against  him,  and  ultimately  that 
we  should  find  health  in  wounding  him. 

®  But  all  we  like  sheep  went  astray,  etc.  Tliat  is,  they  will 
not  only  acknowledge  the  ill-treatment  and  bodily  inflictions 
they  had  made  Israel  sufier,  but  at  the  same  time  their  errors, 
attributing  their  wickedness  thereto;  for  many  will  say,  We 
all  (Ishmaelites  and  Edumeans)  like  sheep  went  astray,  each  in 
his  own  way  followed  a  new  sect ;  just  as  the  prophet  Jeremiah 
says  (xvi.  19).  And  the  Lord  made  to  fall  on  him  the  wickedness 
of  us  all.  That  is,  we  en-ed,  they  followed  the  truth ;  conse- 
quently they  suffered  the  punishments  which  we  deserved. 

"  We  deprived  them  of  their  property  as  tribute,  and  afflicted 
their  bodies  with  various  kinds  of  torture,  yet  he  oj^ened  not 
his  mouth,  etc.  The  experience  of  this  is  seen  every  day, 
particularly  in  the  cruelties  of  the  Inquisition,  and  the  false 
testimony  raised  against  them  to  take  their  wool  and  rob  them 
of  their  property.  And  it  is  exactly  this  that  the  Psalmist  says, 
'  Thou  hast  given  us,  0  Lord,  like  sheep  appointed  for  meat ' 
(xliv.  12);  and  further  on,  'For  thy  sake  are  we  killed  every 
day,  we  are  counted  as  sheep  for  the  slaughter'  (xliv.  23),  suf- 
fering daily  with  the  greatest  patience  these  acts  of  tyranny  and 
fearful  calamities. 

^  He  was  taken  from  confinement  and  judgment.  These  two 
words  have  each  difierent  meanings,  for  l^fiy  signifies  kingdom 
and  confinement  or  -prison,  which  is  the  same  thing.  tODti'D 
denotes  judgment  and  punishment,  as  is  well  known  to  those 
acquainted  with  the  Hebrew  language.  Consequently  according 
to  the  first  sense  it  says.  This  nation  so  abased,  so  vile,  and  which 
we  considered  to  be  almost  void  of  human  form,  was  not  origi- 
nally of  such  low  standing  nor  common  nor  of  small  i-enown  ;  for 
it  has  been  deprived  of  a  wealthy  kingdom,  an  admirable  senate, 
and  a  tribunal  of  justice  or  Sanhedrin ;  and  his  generation,  or 
the  happiness  of  that  former  time  which  he  enjoyed,  who  ivill  he 
able  to  declare,  when  he  is  banished  from  the  Holy  Land  1     Or 


446  R.  MANASSEH    BEN    ISRAEL.  [liil.  Q— 

it  may  also  mean,  Now  lie  is  already  delivered  from  prison  and 
pmiishraent ;  and  who  would  have  thought  or  spoken  of  the 
happiness  of  this  generation,  this  present  time,  when  he  was 
banished  from  the  land  of  the  living,  that  is,  the  promised  land, 
which  is  called  in  Holy  Scripture,  the  land  of  the  living  (Ezek. 
xxxii.  23-27,  Ps.  cxvi.  9).  For  the  transgression  of  my  people 
were  they  smitten.  For  our  wickedness  has  been  the  sole  cause 
of  this  expulsion  from  their  country.  It  must  here  be  ob- 
served that  the  word  10?  lamo  has  the  same  signification  as 
Dn?,  to  them,  as  is  well  known  to  every  one  acquainted  with 
Hebrew  grammar.  And  thus  it  is  evidently  seen  from  this  pas- 
sage that  althougli  the  pi-ophet  speaks  in  the  singular,  and  of  a 
single  people,  all  the  children  of  Israel  are  treated  of 

®  The  nations  continue,  AVe  have  frequently  condemned  this 
people  to  death,  and  buried  them  with  malefactors,  and  with  the 
rich,  vniD3,  in  their  various  deaths,  though  it  is  cei^tain  that, 
in  order  to  take  away  their  property,  we  raised  against  them 
innumerable  false  testimonies,  and  martyred  them,  without  their 
having  committed  any  crime  or  our  having  any  charge  against 
them,  except  of  having  accumulated  wealth,  as  he  continues, 
although  lie  had  committed  no  DCn  robbery  and  tliere  was  no 
deceit  in  his  mouth,  that  is,  allowing  themselves  to  be  robbed  of 
the  property  they  had  not  robbed,  and  to  be  killed  for  the 
sanctification  of  the  Lord,  and  refusing  to  acknowledge  with 
their  mouth  any  other  religion. 

^"  From  this  verse  onward  the  prophet  speaks  in  the  name 
of  the  Lord,  and  relates  the  reason  Avhy  these  troubles  were 
suffered,  and  the  reward  to  be  hoped  from  them.  And  firstly 
he  says  that  the  will  and  determination  of  the  Lord  has  l)een  to 
crush  them  and  to  make  them  sick  by  so  many  different  calami- 
ties, that,  being  purified  by  these  means,  they  may  become  worthy 
of  such  great  felicity.  If  he  offer  his  sotd  as  an  expiation,  DC'N, 
surrendering  it  for  the  sake  of  the  Law;  or,  if  he  give  himself  up 
and  acknowledge  himself  guilty,  becoming  repentant,  as  Joseph's 
brethren,  who  said,  'But  wc  are  guilty'  (Gen.  xlii.  21),  he  shall 


-liii.  II.]  R.  MANASSEir    BEN    ISRAEL.  447 

see  seed,  that  is,  they  shall  multiply  infinitely  (Ezek.  xxxvi.  37, 
Zech.  X.  10,  Dent.  xxx.  5).  He  shall  prolong  days.  The  same 
prophet  confirms  this  where  he  says,  '  As  the  days  of  the  tree,' 
that  is,  the  tree  of  life,  'are  the  days  of  my  people'  (Ixv.  22); 
and  Zechariah,  '  And  every  man  Avith  his  stafi"  in  his  hand  from 
multitude  of  days '  (viii.  4).  Lastly,  a7id  the  will  of  the  Lord, 
■which  is  to  oppress  him  and  make  him  sick  with  punishments 
for  his  gi'eater  glory,  shall  2)>'OS2)er  in  his  hand,  for  the  purpose 
and  end  to  which  they  are  directed  will  be  attained.  Or,  the 
will  of  the  Lord,  which  is  that  all  should  be  saved  and  come  to 
the  holy  knowledge  of  himself,  will  prosper  through  his  hand 
and  means  and  take  effect. 

"At  that  happy  period  Israel  will  see  the  [fruit  of  the]  trouble 
of  his  soul  and  be  satisfied  with  it ;  different  to  that  former  time 
of  which  Moses  says,  '  And  ye  shall  sow  your  seed  in  vain,  and 
your  enemies  shall  eat  it '  (Lev.  xxvi.  1 6,  Deut.  xxviii.  30),  be- 
cause, by  enjoying  everlasting  peace  and  universal  empire,  they 
will  peaceably  enjoy  the  produce  of  the  Holy  Land  (Deut.  xxx.  9, 
Is.  Ixii.  8,  Amos  ix.  14).  Or  it  may  mean,  for  the  trouble  of  his 
soul  which  he  suffered  in  the  miseries  and  misfortunes  of  the 
caiDtivity,  he  will  see  seed  and  be  satisfied  with  days. 

By  his  hnoidedge  my  righteous  servant  shall  justi/g  many. 
That  is,  Israel,  who  is  termed  '  a  righteous  people  and  holy 
nation,'  justifies  many  by  his  knowledge  and  wisdom,  bringing 
them  with  brotherly  love  over  to  the  true  religion,  and  separat- 
ing them  from  their  vain  sects ;  and  this  at  the  very  time  that 
he  hears  their  iniquities,  patiently  suffering  the  tyranny  of  their 
wickedness.  Or  it  may  otherwise  mean,  At  that  time  my  servant 
Israel  will  justify  and  make  many  nations  meritorious  (Mic.  iv.  2, 
Zech.  viii.  23). 

And  he  shall  bear  their  iniquities.  For  being  a  most  religious 
and  holy  people,  he  will  take  charge  of  the  spiritual  administra- 
tion of  the  observance  of  the  Law,  as  Moses  says  to  Aaron, 
'  Thou  and  thy  sons  with  thee  shall  bear  the  iniquity  of  the 
sanctuary'  (Num.  xviii.  i). 


448  R.  MANASSEH    DEN    ISRAEL.  [liii.  tz. 

"  In  this  last  verse  he  treats  of  the  final  conflict,  the  pre- 
lude to  Tsrael's  felicity,  that  is,  of  that  war  of  Gog  and  Magog 
so  extolled  in  the  prophets,  in  which  many  nations  will  join  (as 
is  clear  from  Jer.  xxx,  Ezck.  xxxvi,  and  Joel  iii),  and  this  too 
with  immense  riches  (Zech.  xiv.  i,  14,  Is.  Ix.  5,  Ixi.  6).  These, 
then,  are  the  many  and  mighty,  whose  spoil  the  Lord  promises 
that  they  shall  divide. 

Because  he  poured  out  Ids  soul  unto  death,  etc.  The  prophet 
here  attributes  four  merits  to  them,  for  which  they  justly  de- 
serve the  reward  of  that  happiness  ;  and  again  in  the  form  of  a 
compendium  he  recapitulates  the  contents  of  the  chapter,  i. 
Because  he  delivered  himself  up  to  death,  allowing  himself  ta 
be  killed  for  the  sanctification  of  the  Lord's  name,  and  the 
observance  of  his  most  holy  law.  2.  Because  he  was  reckoned 
among  the  wicked,  patiently  enduring  to  be  called  a  heretic. 
3.  For  having  borne  the  sin  of  many,  the  wickedness  and  tyranny 
of  others  falling  on  his  shoulders.  4.  Lastly,  in  having  observed 
the  precept  of  Jeremiah,  '  Seek  the  welfare  of  the  city  whither  I 
have  caused  you  to  be  carried  captive  '  (xxix.  7);  and  this  too  so 
carefully  that  in  all  their  prayers  they  pray  for  the  health  of  the 
prince,  and  the  peace  of  the  kingdom  or  province  wherein  they 
reside  ;  and  what  is  more,  it  may  be  even  for  the  welfare  of 
those  from  whom  they  are  receiving  insult  and  wrong,  which  is 
highly  meritorious,  and  a  convincing  proof  of  the  constancy  and 
patience  with  which  they  receive  fi'om  the  Lord's  hand  the  yoke 
of  captivity  and  the  sufferings  of  its  misfortunes. 

Thus  far  extends  the  explanation  of  this  chapter,  in  which 
brevity  has  been  the  chief  object,  in  order  to  shew  that  the 
clearness  of  the  subject  does  not  require  long  arguments. 

Beturning  now  to  the  question  with  which  we  began,  the 
solution  of  the  difficulty  is  rendered  easy ;  for  as  souls  are  from 
God,  and  do  not  proceed  from  the  i)arcnts,  the  son  cannot  pay 
for  the  father,  nor  the  father  for  the  son  ;  each  pays  for  his  own 
guilt,  as  Ezckiel  plainly  says,  '  The  souls  are  mine,  as  the  soul 
of  the  father,  so  also  the  soul  of  the  sou ;  the  soul  that  sinneth 


liii.  12.]  11.  MANASSEH    BEN    ISRAEL.  449 

that  shall  die,'  etc.  (xviii.  4-19).  These  are  infallil)le  words  hy 
which  ihc  prophet  shews  tliat  the  wickedness  of  the  father  can- 
not prejudice  the  son,  giving  as  a  reason  that  the  son  receives 
existence  from  his  father  only  so  far  as  regards  the  body,  re- 
ceiving his  soul  as  a  direct  creation  from  God,  a  truth  likewise 
confirmed  by  Isaiah,  who  says,  'And  souls  I  have  made'  (Ivii.  16). 
So  that  every  one  pays  for  his  own  faults,  and  not  for  those  of 
others  which  he  has  not  committed,  as  that  would  be  contrary 
to  God's  most  strict  justice,  which  is  to  reward  eveiy  one  ac- 
cording to  his  own  actions,  as  the  law  expressly  commands  in 
Deuteronomy  (xxiv.  16),  that  by  earthly  justice  the  father  is  not 
to  die  for  the  son,  nor  the  son  for  the  father,  but  that  each  is  to 
die  for  his  own  guilt.  Therefore  neither  body  nor  soul  pays  for 
more  than  its  own  actions.  And  Isaiah  is  not  opposed  to  this, 
for  m  the  first  text  he  treats  of  what  the  nations  will  say,  who, 
recognising  that  Israel  professed  the  true  religion  and  them- 
selves the  false,  will  admit  that  the  troubles  they  justly  merited 
were  suftered  by  that  innocent  people.  And  the  passage  wliich 
says  that  he  bare  the  sin  of  many  signifies  that  he  has  always 
been  the  target  that  received  the  aim  of  their  wickedness,  as  wo 
have  explained. 


Gg 


C.     ISAAC   OROBIO   DE   CASTRO. 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

pARArnBASTIC     EXPLANATION     OF     THE     FIFTY-THIRD     CHAPTER     OF     THB 

PROPHET  Isaiah. 

Christianity  has  formed  out  of  the  fifty-third  chapter  of 
Isaiah  its  principal  ai'gument  for  proving  the  truth  of  the  gospel 
history;  for  as  this  contains  nothing  more  than  the  life,  passion, 
and  death  of  him  whom  they  adore  as  very  Cod  and  ISIessiah, 
and  they  find  the  same  portrayed  in  this  chajiter  in  .sucli  vivid 
colours  that  its  expositors  call  it  th^  passion  chajHer,  and  Isaiah 
the  evangelical  prophet,  they  make  use  of  it  as  a  convenient 
proof  that  Isaiah  predicted  hy  divine  inspiration  all  that  is 
related  in  the  gospel,  and  that  the  Messiah  was  to  die  and 
suffer  for  tlie  sins  of  mankind ;  that  in  this  the  redemption  Cod 
had  promised  the  pcoi^le  of  Israel  so  many  ages  before  would 
consist;  that  this  people  will  acknowledge  this  truth  in  the 
latter  days,  and  being  converted  to  the  Christian  faith  will  con- 
fess how  unjustly  it  punished  and  put  to  death  the  Messiah 
innocent  of  all  sin,  and  that  Israel  will  wonder  at  the  glorious 
end  of  him  whom  it  had  before  executed  on  the  charge  of  higli 
treason  against  Cod.  They  pretend  that  all  this  is  signified  in 
this  chapter  in  such  express  words  that  they  appear  incapable 
of  admitting  any  other  interpretation,  notwithstanding  the  op- 
position the  Jews  have  always  made  not  to  admit  it.  So  the 
Christian  doctors  argue :  but  it  is  well  worthy  of  consideration 
that,  tliough  they  hold  this  chapter  to  be  so  clear  and  express  in 


lii,  liii.]  ISAAC  onoBio  de  castro.  451 

favour  of  their  fundamental  doctrine,  yet  Paul  in  the  epistle  he 
wrote  to  the  Hebrews,  in  which  he  tries  to  convince  tlicni  and 
shew  that  Christ  is  the  true  Messiah,  in  reference  to  wlinni  he 
quotes  out  of  the  whole  of  Holy  Scripture  all  the  verses  which 
he  could  directly  or  indirectly  accommodate  to  his  purpose,  has 
made  no  mention  in  any  way  of  this  chapter  of  Isaiah,  and  has 
not  quoted  a  single  verse  of  it ;  but  if  he  understood  it  to  be  so 
clear  and  evident,  as  the  Christians  afterwards  pretended,  who 
could  acquit  Paul  of  great  negligence  or  ignorance  in  quoting 
for  his  argument  such  a  number  of  verses  of  the  Holy  Scriptures 
that  he  can  in  no  way  apply  to  his  purpose,  and  omitting  those 
which  formed  the  principal  support  of  his  object  to  persuade 
the  Gentile  and  convince  the  Hebrew  1  whence  we  may  gather 
that  Paul  in  writing  to  the  Hebrews  did  not  understand  this 
chapter  of  the  Messiah,  for  he  was  well  aware  that  they  under- 
standing the  divine  writings  would  not  allow  themselves  to  be 
deceived,  and  would  not  accept  an  api)lication  so  strange,  as  we 
shall  prove  in  the  following  discourses. 

CHAPTER   XXV. 

The  fiuouNDs  Cbristianitt  had   for  believing  that  the  Messiah 

WAS   TO   die;   fob   mankind   ABE   PB0P08ED   FOR   CONSIDERATION. 

In  order  to  be  able  to  apply  the  fifty-third  chapter  of  Isaiah 
to  the  King  Messiah,  as  the  Christian  church  pretends,  it  was 
obliged  to  suppose  that  the  innocent  had  to  die  for  the  redemp- 
tion of  souls,  on  which  supposition  the  whole  Christian  doctrine 
rests.  But  if  that  supposition  be  demolished  and  we  prove  it  to 
be  opposed  to  truth  and  natural  reason,  they  have  nothing  left 
to  claim  out  of  the  fifty-third  chapter :  since  there  will  be  no 
innocent  being  who  dies  to  whom  they  can  apply  it,  and  they 
will  be  obliged  to  look  for  some  one  else  as  the  subject  of  this 
prophecy. 

They  affirm  that  Adam's  sin  was  infinitely  wicked,  because 
the  ofi'ence  was  against  an  infinite  God  ;   that  this  sin,  whicli 

Gg  2 


452  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [Hi,  lui- 

they  call  original,  was  communicated  to  tlie  whole  human  race, 
both  Adam  and  all  mankind  becoming  enemies  of  God,  slaves 
of  the  devil,  children  of  wrath,  condemned  to  hell,  and  banished 
from  glory.  They  say,  moreover,  that  neither  Adam  nor  any 
other  man  could  atone  for  this  or  for  any  other  sin,  since,  as  the 
debt  is  infinite,  so  must  the  pajnnent  be,  that  is,  the  merits  of 
the  acts  of  man ;  but  as  man  is  in  his  natui'e  finite,  he  could  do 
no  act  which  would  possess  an  infinite  value,  particularly  as 
since  Adam's  sin  man's  inclination  is  become  corrupt ;  and,  as 
the  Protestants  maintain,  he  is  rendered  incapable  of  doing  any 
meritorious  act ;  consequently  mankind  is  lost,  rejected  bj'  God, 
and  condemned.  They  say,  moreover,  that  God  in  his  infinite 
power  could  easily  pardon  man's  offence,  because  his  mercy  and 
power  are  infinite  ;  but  that  it  would  be  prejudicial  to  the 
divine  justice,  Avhich  demands  a  regular  and  complete  satisfac- 
tion, without  which  it  would  fail  in  equity  and  righteousness, 
by  forgiving  an  infinite  debt  for  a  satisfaction  and  payment  of 
finite  value,  as  all  the  acts  of  man  are;  accordingly,  it  was  neces- 
fiary  tliat  there  should  be  a  man  whose  works  and  merits  should 
be  of  infinite  value,  in  order  that  by  his  death  he  might  pay  the 
debt  which  the  whole  human  race  owed  God,  and  that  thus,  by  an 
innocent  Tieing  dying  that  the  innocence  of  one  might  pay  for  the 
wickedness  of  all,  it  might  be  delivered  from  eternal  death,  the 
debt  which  Adam  incurred  for  himself  and  his  descendants. 
No  mere  creature  was  able  to  effect  this  end,  and,  therefore, 
God  pitying  mankind  sent  his  son  into  the  world,  who  being 
also  God  in  unity  of  essence  and  nature  should  take  upon  him- 
self human  flesh  and  be  very  man,  in  order  that  he  might  suffer 
and  die  for  the  sin  of  all  men,  taking  upon  himself  not  only  the 
crimes  but  also  the  punishment  for  thera,  which  he  washed  away 
by  his  death,  because  his  works  had  infinite  efficacy,  he  being  God 
and  man  in  one  and  the  same  person  ;  accordingly  he  paid  in  total 
to  divine  justice  all  that  mankind  owed  as  remaining  due  for 
the  sin  of  Adam,  and  for  all  those  that  men  might  commit  after- 
wards, provided  they  believe  in   and  avail    themselves  of  the 


Hi,  liii.]  ISAAC    OllOBIO    DE   CASTRO.  453 

merits  of  the  death  of  tlie  Messiah,  who  is  iu  tliis  way  the 
Redeemer  of  the  world,  and  of  Israel  too,  if  they  would  believe 
him  to  be  such.  This  is  the  faith,  doctrine,  and  religion  of 
Christianity ;  upon  this  groundwork  all  its  theology  rests. 

Human  intellect,  particulai'ly  that  of  the  Israelite,  requires 
no  great  acumen  to  I'efute  this  fundamental  argument ;  it  is 
sufl&cient  to  have  recourse  to  the  Holy  Scriptures,  which  are  the 
rule  of  all  that  we  ought  to  believe  and  observe;  and  since  there 
are  many  dogmas  that  the  Lord  did  not  command  us,  it  is  suffi- 
cient to  reject  them  and  pay  no  regard  to  them  :  nevertheless, 
we  shall  discuss  this  matter  briefly  so  far  as  may  be  sufficient  to 
shew  we  are  not  ignorant  of  it. 

In  the  fii'st  place,  it  is  never  said  in  the  Holy  Scriptures  that 
the  sin  of  Adam  was  infinitely  wicked,  that  through  it  Adam 
and  his  posterity  became  enemies  of  God  and  slaves  of  the  devil; 
it  is  not  mentioned  in  the  Law ;  the  prophets  never  deplored  it, 
nor  made  allusion  to  any  such  reprobation  and  banishment  from 
God,  as  afterwards  Paul  deplored  and  bewailed  it  in  all  his 
writings,  in  order  to  introduce  to  the  world  by  this  innovation 
the  necessity  of  the  Messiah  he  preached  :  Adam  sinned,  the 
Loi'd  condemneil  him,  and  executed  the  sentence  on  him,  but 
there  was  not  in  tliat  sentence  a  single  clause  about  eternal 
enmity  and  condemnation  to  hell;  now  since  God  has  not  said  this, 
it  is  useless  to  urge  it  on  the  belief  of  those  who  must  believe 
only  what  God  has  said.  Besides,  the  guilt  of  man  could  never 
be  infinitely  wicked,  because  from  man,  who  is  a  limited  prin- 
ciple, nothing  good  or  Ijad  can  proceed  that  can  be  infinite ;  and 
if,  as  they  affirm,  the  wickedness  of  the  offence  acquires  its  in- 
finite nature  by  its  being  against  God,  whose  excellence  is 
infinite,  then  also  good  works  will  be  of  infinite  perfection,  since 
they  are  performed  towards  the  same  God,  and  in  relation  to 
his  being,  which  is  infinite ;  and  indeed  with  greater  reason, 
since  man  docs  not  commit  sin  directly  against  God,  for  no  one 
sins  with  the  view  of  offending  hira,  but  in  order  to  follow  the 
sensuality  of  his  own  appetite;  rather  the  sinner  would  wish 


454  ISAAC   OROBIO   DE  CASTRO.  [lii,  Hii. 

that  God  should  uot  kuow  of  it,  and  to  conceal  himself  from  his 
divine  Majesty,  if  he  could  do  so,  as  Cain  did,  denying  his  sin  ; 
hence  it  is  certain  that  no  one  wishes  to  sin  to  offend  God  ; 
and  if  he  sins,  he  offends  him  indirectly,  and,  if  it  were  possible, 
he  would  wish  to  sin  without  offending  him.  But  good  work, 
repentance  and  penance,  is  done  directly  for  God,  and  in  order 
to  i)lease  liim,  and  appease  his  anger  by  doing  all  that  lies  in 
him  to  return  to  the  divine  favour ;  hence  it  is  more  reasonable 
that  the  work  done  directly  to  please  God  should  have  per- 
fection and  infinite  wisdom  through  the  infinity  on  the  side  of 
God,  towards  whom  it  is  directed,  than  that  a  sin  committed 
without  any  intention  of  displeasing  or  offending  God  should 
be  infinitely  wicked  or  imperfect  through  the  infinity  of  God, 
towards  whom  it  is  neither  directed  nor  intended  by  the  sinner. 
This  is  evident,  and  no  Christian  doctor  will  be  able,  with  all 
liis  subtleties,  to  maintain  the  contrary,  and  for  that  reason  the 
Lord  did  not  say  so,  because  infinite  and  supreme  truth  cannot 
say  anything  repugnant  to  itself. 

But  leaving  aside  this  speculation,  we  suppose  that  man  can- 
not pay  God  in  proportion  to  his  wickedness ;  it  is  unworthily 
concluded,  however,  that  divine  justice  is  injured  by  the  Lord 
using  his  divine  mercy  towards  his  creatures  in  such  a  way  that 
it  is  necessary  to  pay  him  the  total  or  perish  through  the  debt ; 
this  is  contrary  to  his  justice,  contrary  to  his  infinite  mercy,  his 
absolute  power  and  liberty  essentially  independent  of  all.  In 
the  first  place,  they  suppose  that  divine  justice  is  after  the 
manner  of  human,  that  God  is  obliged  to  act  in  such  and  such 
a  way,  and  if  he  should  act  in  any  other  way  it  would  be  con- 
trary to  justice,  just  as  human  judges,  who  judge  according 
to  certain  laws  to  which  they  are  subject,  and  which  they  must 
not  transgress  (and  should  they  do  'so,  they  would  act  against 
justice),  must  not  punish  the  innocent  or  pardon  the  crime  of 
the  guilty,  but  only  observe  the  laws  by  which  they  are  bound ; 
who  will  be  so  blasphemous  as  to  impose  this  manner  of  justice 
on  the  Creator  himself?     What  are  the  laws  which  he  has  to 


lii,  liii.]  ISAAC    ORODIO    DE    CASTRO.  455 

observe  1  Not  such  is  divine  justice,  for  the  Lord  is  absolute 
and  iudependeiit  in  his  action ;  we  say  he  is  just,  because  all 
tliat  he  does  and  can  do  is  just,  because  he  is  justice  itself;  all 
that  he  does  is  supremely  right  and  free  from  any  kind  of 
■wickedness ;  when  he  punishes  the  sinner,  he  acts  justly  ;  when 
he  pardons  him  and  has  mercy  on  him,  he  also  acts  justly; 
when  he  destroys  the  innocent  in  Canaan  he  is  righteous,  and 
when  he  pardons  the  repentant  Ninevitcs  he  is  just ;  he  did 
not  act  less  righteously  and  justly  when  he  pardoned  David 
than  when  he  punished  Saul,  and  had  he  been  pleased  to  destroy 
David  and  pardon  Saul,  he  would  have  acted  Avith  equal  justice 
and  righteousness.  Whatever  his  divine  Majesty  wishes  is  true 
justice ;  the  Lord  obeys  no  laws,  his  infinite  being  is  supremely 
good,  and  so  his  acts  are  infinitely  good  and  right,  whether  he 
pardons  or  punishes ;  and  his  divine  justice  must  be  so  under- 
stood that  it  can  as  well  perform  acts  of  benevolence  by  pardon- 
ing as  of  severity  by  punishing,  although  in  our  manner  of 
understanding  we  call  one  justice  and  the  other  mercy  :  granted 
this  truth,  why  could  or  would  he  not  pardon  the  sin  of  re- 
pentant Adam  as  well  as  of  his  posterity,  and  use  his  just  mercy 
and  pitiful  justice  by  taking  from  them  what  their  poor  nature 
can  pay,  namely,  repentance  for  their  crimes,  particularly  when 
the  Lord  has  promised,  in  so  many  passages  of  Holy  Scripture, 
that  he  will  not  despise  the  contrite  sinner,  that  he  does  not 
wish  the  death  of  the  sinner,  but  that  he  should  be  converted 
and  live;  that  although  his  sins  may  be  red  as  scarlet,  he  will 
cleanse  them  and  make  them  white  as  snow,  if  the  sinner  will 
only  humble  himself  and  be  converted  ]  Thus  says  the  Lord, 
thus  he  promises,  because  his  divine  wisdom  does  not  demand 
impossibilities  invented  by  the  human  mind.  "Who  bound  the 
Lord's  hands  that  he  should  not  use  mercy?  what  laws  oblige 
him  not  to  be  satisfied  1  who  will  demand  an  account  from  him 
for  his  having  mercifully  pardoned  the  poor  penitent  sinner? 
God  never  said  such  a  thing,  either  through  Lis  law  or  by  his 
prophets,  nor  could  he  have  said  it,  for  by  such  a  suggestion  he 


456  ISAAC  oKOBio  UE  CASTUO.  [Hi,  liii. 

wouhl  uecet^siirily  have  ceased  to  lie  God,  aud  been  deprived 
of  bis  infinite  liberty  as  regai'ds  all  that  righteousness  which  is 
80  inconiprehuusiblc  to  us. 

And  granted  (as  the  Christian  will  have  it)  that  the  sinner 
bad  to  pay  in  full  to  divine  justice  all  that  be  owes  fur  his  crime, 
there  would  never  be  place  for  mercy,  because  be  who  pays  in 
full  all  be  owes  receives  no  grace  or  mercy  from  justice  or  his 
creditor ;  and  this  is  not  contradicted  by  one  paying  the  debt 
of  another,  as  the  debt  is  no  less  paid  off  than  if  one  paid  for 
himself,  since  if  the  sinner  is  obliged  to  i)ay  either  by  himself 
or  through  another  all  be  owes  God  and  bis  justice,  there  is 
no  place  left  for  mercy,  which  is  contrary  to  the  goodness  of 
God,  and  is  repuguant  to  all  be  has  revealed  iu  the  Holy 
Scriptures,  that  his  mercy  is  over  all  his  works. 

However  this  new  dogma,  destitute  of  any  support  in  Holy 
Scripture,  may  be  defended,  namely,  that  in  order  to  re- 
turn to  the  grace  of  God  it  is  necessary  to  satisfy  in  full  his 
justice,  Christianity  will  gain  nothing  by  the  death  of  the  Mes- 
siah; for  how  could  justice  be  well  satisfied  by  the  execution  and 
death  of  a  most  holy  and  innocent  man,  who  had  never  com- 
mitted any  crime  nor  inherited  that  of  Adam  1  In  truth,  no 
gi'cater  injustice  can  be  imagined  than  that  of  innocence  suffer- 
ing for  the  wickedness  of  the  impious,  the  killing  a  righteous 
man  that  the  wicked,  the  transgressors,  may  not  die,  when  the 
Lord  says  that  every  one  shall  die  for  bis  own  crime  (Ezek. 
xviii.  2o);  distributive  justice  consists  in  giving  each  one  what 
he  deserves,  although  in  the  punishment  divine  mercy  may 
interpose  to  moderate  it  with  such  righteousness  that  that  very 
moderation  is  also  divine.  But  justice  would  never  be  righteous 
if  it  punished  the  innocent  for  the  crime  of  the  impious ;  the 
Anralekitc  children  did  not  die  for  the  crimes  of  their  fathers, 
but  by  the  just  judgment  of  God,  that  tliey  might  not  be  wicked 
like  their  fathers ;  and  the  same  in  the  universal  deluge  of  the 
world  and  similar  instances  in  which  the  infinite  wisdom  foresaw 
great  cxpedicno}'  iu  the  death  of  those  who  had  not  yet  sinned ; 


Hi,  liii.]  ISAAC  oiiODio  de  castuo.  457 

but  he  never  destroyed  any  one  to  punlsli  liini  for  the  sin  of 
another,  tliough  it  is  well  that  the  death  of  those  who  did  not 
sin  may  also  serve  as  punishment  to  the  sinner  who  grieves  over 
the  death,  as  David  grieved  over  the  death  of  the  child*  of  the 
wife  of  Uriah  ;   it  was  agreeable  to  the  divine  judgment  that 
the  child  should  die,  but  it  did  not  die  to  pay  with  its  life  for 
the  sin  of  David  ;  although  God  punished  David  with  the  death 
of  the  child,  it  is  impossible  that  one  should  commit  the  crime 
and  another  bear  the  punishment,  so  that  the  criminal  may  be 
acquitted  of  his  sin   and   the  innocent  punished  ;    that  could 
never  be  agreeable  or  satisfactory  to  divine  justice,  which,  as  it 
cannot  make  the  sin  of  one  to  be  the  act  of  another,  can  no 
more  demand   that  the  punishment  be  inilicted  on  any  other 
than  the  actual  one  who  committed  the  sin.    And  if  the  Messiah, 
whom  they  believe  in,  was  most  holy,  innocent,  just,  incapable  of 
sin,  it  could  not  be  agreeable  to  divine  justice  that,  being  fault- 
less, he  should  suffer,  be  executed,  and  die,  and  that  he  should 
bear  the  punishment  for  the  crimes  of  others;    never  would 
diviiie  justice  be  more  offended  than  by  so  manifest  an  act  of 
injustice ;   and  if,  as  they  confess,  men  killed  him  unjustly,  it 
was  the  greatest  injustice  on  the  part  of  God  to  send  him  and 
prepare  the  express  means  that  he  should  be  destroyed.     iS'or 
is  this  doctrine  contradicted  by  the  case  of  the  Gibeonites,  for 
whose  satisfaction  David  w^as  by  divine  decree  made  to  destroy 
the  children  and  nephews  of  Saul,  because  these  were  accom- 
plices in  the  pillage  and  murder  of  the  Gibeonites,  and  therefore 
God  demanded  that  they  should  pay  for  their  sin,  and  his  holy 
name  should  be  glorified  by  jmnishing  the  violation  of  the  an- 
cient oath  on  Saul  and  his  family,  called  in  Scripture  a  house  of 
blood,  the  Lord  condemning  not  only  Saul  but  his  family,  whom 
he  justly  wished  to  destroy  by  this  means.  But  in  accordance  with 
right  and  natural  reason  his  justice  would  be  most  satisfied  and 
righteous  by  the  guilty  one  paying  on  his  part  as  much  as  he  can, 
and  by  his  forgiving  him  what  he  cannot  pay,  instead  of  exacting 
the  whole  of  the  debt  from  another,  who  is  innocent  and  who  owes 


458  ISAAC   OROBIO   DE   CASTRO.  [Hi,  lui. 

nothing  :  this  is  tyranny,  not  righteousness  nor  justice,  either 
human  or  divine.  It  might  be  objected  to  the  doctrine  which 
we  have  been  expounding,  tliat  Adam's  sin  is  experienced  in  the 
punisliment  that  mankind  now  suffers  from  the  curse  that  God 
passed  on  liim  and  his  posterity,  wliile  he  and  Eve  alone  were 
the  perpetrators  of  that  crime,  from  which  it  appears  that  God 
inflicted  the  punishment  of  their  misdeed  on  those  who  did  not 
commit  it,  and  it  is  therefore  called  orvjioial,  because  the  penalty 
for  it  came  on  the  first  parents. 

This  subject  is  very  difficult,  and  this  is  not  the  place  to  treat 
it  with  any  completeness.  But  we  shall  briefly  state  the  true 
explanation  :  God  punished  Adam  for  his  sin  with  no  other 
punishment  than  that  of  leaving  him  in  every  respect  conforma- 
ble to  his  human  nature,  to  which  the  Lord  had  gi'anted  great 
privileges  for  life,  if  he  had  kept  righteous  and  obedient  to  his 
Creator;  but  as  he  traupgressed  the  divine  precept,  God  took 
them  away  from  him  and  he  was  left  deprived  of  them,  and  not 
only  himself,  but  his  wife  and  their  descendants ;  they  never 
merited  them,  because  the  Lord  had  bestowed  them  of  his  free 
mercy,  and  therefore  he  never  deviated  from  justice  towards  their 
posterity  in  leaving  man  in  all  the  perfection  of  human  nature 
without  any  privilege ;  this  is  not  God  punishing  mankind  for 
the  sin  of  Adam,  but  God  not  giving  men  what  of  his  grace  he 
had  given  Adam,  and  had  afterwards  in  justice  taken  back  ; 
so  it  is  true  that  the  Lord  never  inflicted  upon  any  one  tlie 
punishment  for  a  sin  which  another  had  committed,  in  order  by 
that  means  to  deliver  the  guilty  from  his  own  guilt. 

And  Christianity  is  not  helped  by  the  answer  that  the  Mes- 
siah was  willing  to  sufl'er  and  die  for  the  sin  of  men  ;  that  it  was 
his  own  voluntary  act,  and  that  hence  God  did  him  no  injustice 
in  letting  him  suffer  and  die ;  and  that  he  could  through  his 
innocence  merit  pardon  for  all  the  guilty  of  mankind.  This 
answer  is  contrary  to  reason,  because,  although  a  righteous  man 
may  be  willing  to  give  his  life  for  the  guilty,  the  righteous- 
nesd  of  justice  does   uot  allow   the  judge    to  accept    such    an 


lii,  liii.]  ISAAC  orobio  de  castro,  459 

offer;  and  he  who  should  accept  it  would  be  an  unjust  judge, 
much  more  so  if  he  wished  it  and  disposed  the  direct  means 
to  bi-iug  about  that  the  innocent  perish  for  the  impious  ; 
but  the  Christian  doctrine  affirms  that  the  eternal  Father,  who 
is  the  judge  in  this  suit,  sent  his  Son,  and  through  the  agency 
of  the  third  Person,  whom  they  call  the  Holy  Ghost,  made  him 
man,  only  to  the  end  that  he  might  suffer  that  death  from  men  ; 
wherefore  both  the  eternal  Father  and  that  other  Person  would 
be  ini(juitous  judges,  not  only  in  accepting  such  an  unjust  death, 
but  decreeing  it  and  disposing  the  means  to  bring  it  about, 
bidding  him  suffer  it  patiently,  which  is  clear  from  the  gospel 
which  relates  that  in  his  agony  in  the  garden  he  prayed  to  his 
Father  if  it  were  possible  to  excuse  his  drinking  that  cup  of 
bitterness,  and  if  not,  that  his  will  might  be  done.  And  Paul 
says  that  he  was  obedient  to  death,  even  the  death  of  the  cross ; 
consequently  he  suffered  innocently  by  order  of  God,  to  atone  for 
the  sin  which  he  had  not  committed,  delivering  the  guilty,  and 
himself  bearing  the  penalty  and  curse,  as  Paul  says,  '  It  is  writ- 
ten. Accursed  is  he  that  hangeth  on  the  tree ; '  but  Christ 
wished  to  be  accursed  or  be  made  a  curse  for  our  sake,  to  obey 
his  Father  who  had  sent  him  for  that  pm'pose,  exacting  satisfac- 
tion of  his  justice  through  the  death  of  his  innocent  Son,  in 
order  in  this  way  to  pardon  mankind,  including  even  those  who 
killed  him.  But  by  this  divine  justice  was  highly  injured,  and 
the  righteousness  of  the  Creator  suffered  the  greatest  insult  in 
being  pleased  that  innocence  should  sutler,  and  wickedness  should 
escape  pimishment. 

The  whole  of  this  Christian  mode  of  reasoning  results  in 
nothing  else  than  a  denial  of  the  infinite  mercy  of  the  blessed 
God  towards  his  creatures ;  because,  if  we  acknowledge  his 
mercy,  no  reason  is  left  why  it  should  be  necessary  for  God  to 
come  into  the  world  to  make  himself  man  and  die  for  men  in 
atonement  for  their  sins ;  and,  if  he  did  not  come,  the  whole 
machinery  of  Christianity  comes  to  nought ;  consetiuently  they 
are  forced  to  persist  in  maintaining  that  mercy  could  not  find 


460  ISAAC  OROBio  DE  CASTRO.  [Hi,  liii. 

place  uor  sin  bo  pardoucd  exccjjt  by  means  of  tbc  death  of  God 
made  man. 

The  Lord  says  the  contrary  in  Holy  Scripture,  promising 
his  creatures  innumerable  times  absolute  pardon  of  their  sins, 
provided  only  thoy  desire  it  and  arc  disposed  to  receive  that 
blessing,  without  his  immortal  Majesty  or  any  innocent  being 
or  Messiah  dying,  but  all  living,  turned  away  from  their  wicked 
ways  towards  the  Lord  their  God,  repentant  and  corrected  of 
their  transgressions.  Thus  he  declares  it  to  his  people  by  Eze- 
kiel  (xviii.  30),  saying,  'Therefore  I  will  judge  you,  0  house 
of  Israel,  evci-y  one  according  to  his  ways,  saitli  Adonai  God' 
(thus  speaks  the  righteousness  of  justice) ;  and  then  the  equity 
of  mercy  follows,  'Repent  and  turn  yom'selves  from  your  trans- 
gressions ;  so  iniquity  shall  not  be  your  ruin,'  etc.  This  is  what 
Adonai  God  says,  but  what  the  nations  say  is  different  and 
contrary  to  it. 

The  Christian  says  that  neither  Israel  nor  any  of  mankind 
can  return  to  God ;  that  let  man  do  what  he  may  he  will 
always  be  stumbling  in  his  sin,  without  any  possibility  of  free- 
ing himself  from  its  snares ;  but  the  Lord  says  that  your  sin, 
if  repented  of,  shall  be  no  more  a  stumbling-block  to  you.  They 
say  that  although  man  may  in  his  contrition  depart  from  sin, 
he  must  still  die  a  spiritual  death ;  but  the  Lord,  supposing 
contrition,  says,  '  Why  wilt  thou  die,  0  house  of  Israel  V 
God  does  not  say  that  another  shall  pay  the  penalty  for  the 
guilt  of  man,  but  that  man  should  depart  from  sin  and  be  con- 
verted, '  Cast  away  from  you  all  your  sins,  return  to  me  and 
live  : '  he  does  not  say  that  he  will  die  for  us  that  we  may  live,  but 
that  we  should  return  to  him  and  so  we  shall  live :  with  that 
his  justice,  his  righteousness',  his  mercy  are  consistent,  and  con- 
formable to  all  the  Holy  Scripture,  without  there  being  in  the 
whole  of  it  a  single  word  which  directly  or  indirectly,  in  light 
or  in  shadow  (as  they  say),  signifies  the  contraiy ;  there  is 
nothing  about  Adam's  debt,  or  infinite  wickedness,  or  the 
impossibility  of  satisfying  divine  justice,  or  the  death  of  the 


lii,  liii.]  ISAAC  OROBio  de  castro.  461 

God-man    Rfessiah    to    pay,  by  dying   innocent,   what    be    did 
not  owe. 

Wherefore  the  foundation  of  Christianity  is  destroyed  and 
disproved,  and  consequently  it  cannot  apply  the  fifty-third 
chapter  to  the  ^lessiah  dying  to  expiate  sin,  since  such  a  death 
never  was  nor  coukl  ever  be  accepted  by  God,  and  would  not  be 
of  benefit  to  his  creatures,  as  every  one  shall  atone  for  his  own 
sin,  and  neither  God  nor  any  one  else  will  atone  for  them,  as  it 
is  said,  'Therefore  I  will  judge  every  one  after  his  own  ways, 
0  house  of  Israel,  saith  Adonai  God.' 


CHAPTER   XXVI. 

It  is  proved  that  even  understanding  the  fifty-third  chapter  as 
THE  [Christian]   doctors  wii,l  have  it  op  the  Messiah,  they 

CAN   in   no   way   apply   IT   AS   THEY   CLAIM   TO   DO. 

Geanted  the  truth  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  concerning  the  re- 
demption of  Israel,  and  how  it  is  to  be  according  to  the  divine 
promise,  and  the  qualities  and  merits  of  the  true  Messiah,  who 
will  be  an  instrument  of  God  and  the  chief  of  redeemed  Israel, 
as  all  the  prophets  described  him,  in  order  that  Israel  might 
never  be  mistaken  in  recognising  him,  or  admit  before  his  ad- 
vent others  who  might  be  proposed  either  by  the  wickedness  of 
any  of  the  people  or  by  the  ignorance  of  the  Gentiles ;  and 
granted  also  the  refutation  of  the  Christian  arguments  by  which 
they  pretend  to  darken  our  truth,  and  the  clearness  and  sin- 
cerity of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  by  which  we  demonstrate  that 
neither  the  Messiah  nor  any  other  innocent  man  was  to  die  for 
the  sins  either  of  Israel  or  of  the  nations,  it  is  well  that  we 
should  come  to  the  fifty-third  chapter,  from  which  they  claim 
a  full  proof  of  all  they  afhrm,  and  a  refutation  of  ourselves ;  now 
although  it  is  evidently  shewn,  by  what  has  been  said,  that  he 
whom  they  believe  in  was  not  the  Messiah  of  Israel,  since  he 
accomplished  neither  the  redemption  nor  any  other  of  the  effects 
predicted  by  the  piophets,  still  it  may  be  pi-opcr  to  examine  if 


462  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [lili.  I. 

the  contents  of  tliis  chapter  can  be  applied  to  him,  ?o  as  to 
demonstrate  tliat,  even  understanding  it  as  they  wish,  it  is  not 
applicable  to  this  subject. 

Let  U3  allow  (although  false  and  contrary  to  prophetic  truth) 
that  the  Messiah  was  to  die  a  violent  death  for  the  sins  of  man, 
and  that  this  is  expressed  in  tliis  prophetical  fifty-third  chapter 
of  Isaiah  ;  and  let  us  allow  also  (although  very  doubtful)  that 
he  whom  they  claim  to  be  such  said  he  was  the  Messiah,  and 
that  the  Romans  and  the  Jews  punished  him  and  hung  him  on 
the  gallows,  which  was  the  cross  on  which  tliey  hung  malefac- 
tors; would  this  perchance  suffice  to  constitute  him  the  tme 
Messiah,  if  all  the  things  contained  in  this  chapter  should  not 
fit  him  1  would  his  dying  be  sufficient,  if  he  did  by  his  death 
nothing  else  of  what  the  jjrophet  declares  that  the  servant  of 
God,  whom  he  introduces  there,  was  to  do,  and  whose  afflictions 
he  relates  1  There  will  be  no  Christian  who  will  say  that  it 
would  be  sufficient  unless  he  did  and  fulfilled  all  that  is  prophe- 
sied of  that  servant  of  God.  Let  us  see,  then,  how  the  principal 
verses  of  the  prophecy  are  applicable  to  him. 

LIII.  '  Who  believed  our  report,  and  upon  whom  ivas  tite 
arm  of  Adonai  manifested'}  Granting  that  the  whole  of  the 
chapter  speaks  of  the  Messiah,  upon  whom  they  affirm  the 
arm  of  Adonai  was  manifested,  it  may  be  easily  gathered 
from  these  words  that  the  Messiah  is  not  Adonai  but  simply 
a  man.  Since  it  says  that  upon  him  Adonai  manifested  his 
arm,  the  arm  is  not  Messiah's  but  that  of  Adonai,  because, 
if  he  was  man  and  God,  his  own  arm  would  have  been  mani- 
fested u})on  him,  and  he  would  not  have  occasion  to  refer  to 
another  Adonai ;  since  there  can  be  but  one,  and  that  would 
be  himself;  by  which  it  is  clearly  seen  that  he  spoke  of  a 
creature  favoured  by  its  Creator,  not  of  the  Creator  under 
the  form  of  a  creature ;  for,  if  he  was  the  Creator,  the  prophet 
would  have  said  that  his  own  right  hand  and  his  holy  arm  had 
paved  him.  In  the  second  and  third  verses  he  describes  the 
abasement  and  mean  state  of  the  servant  of  God  of  whom  he  is 


liii.  4,  5.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  463 

speaking,  who  ought  to  be  esteemed  and  venerated,  and  employs 
the  fourth  verse  in  describing  the  troubles  and  miseries  he  suf- 
fered, saying,  Surely  he,  hath  borne  oxtr  sicknesses,  and  sustained 
our  sufferings,  hut  toe  esteemed  him  stricken  and  wounded  by 
God,  and  afflicted;  and  the  fifth  verse  continues.  But  he  rvas 
wounded  for  our  sins,  crushed  by  our  revolt,  the  chastisement 
of  our  peace  was  uj)on  him,  and  by  his  wounds  ours  were 
fiealed.  These  and  other  similar  verses  which  follow  are  ex- 
plained by  Christianity  of  the  sins  of  mankind  which  the  Mes- 
siah took  upon  himself  to  atone  for,  or  of  the  punishments 
which  Israel  and  the  nations  deserved  for  their  crimes  and  that 
original  sin  which  they  inherited  from  Adam :  these  the  pro- 
phet calls  sicknesses,  sufferings,  and  his  passion  and  death  the 
cause  of  healing,  which  is  the  expiation  and  deliverance  from 
sin  and  its  effects. 

It  is  necessary,  according  to  the  Christian  doctrine,  that  the 
Messiah  should  bear  our  sufferings,  and  heal  our  sicknesses,  that 
both  things  should  be  fulfilled  in  him  whom  they  adore  as  God 
and  Messiah  ;  and  to  know  if  he  did  so,  and  if  what  the  prophet 
says  was  actually  fulfilled  in  him,  we  ask  whether  these  suffer- 
ings and  this  healing  are  to  be  understood  materially  with 
regard  to  the  temporal  troubles  and  miseries  of  Israel,  or  spiritu- 
ally in  so  far  as  it  refers  to  the  purity  and  expiation  of  the  soul, 
so  that  they  might  enjoy  the  divine  glory.  If  it  were  to  be 
understood  according  to  the  former  meaning,  Israel  could  never 
say  such  a  thing,  nor  can  it  be  affirmed  of  that  subject ;  as  since 
his  death  Israel  has  remained  scattered  throughout  the  world 
as  it  was  for  600  years  before  his  advent ;  and  much  more  so 
since  the  destruction  of  the  holy  city  and  the  sacred  temple, 
suffering  extreme  calamities,  and  the  most  cruel  sufferings  of 
captivity  among  the  nations,  which  fact  they  acknowledge  in 
continual  aggravation  of  our  misery :  therefore  he  did  not  bear 
these  sicknesses  and  sufferings,  since  they  continue  to  this 
day;  and  with  his  wounds,  passion,  and  death  he  was  not  the 
healing  of  Israel  which  remained  oppressed  by  tlie  same  infirmity 


464  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [Hii-  4r  r- 

of  its  captivity;  on  the  contrary,  according  to  their  belief, 
from  his  death  originated  our  ruin,  the  persecutions,  the  ex- 
treme contempt,  the  mortal  liatred,  and  the  protracted  wander- 
ings from  which  we  sutler.  And  if  lie  was  the  true  Messiah 
(admitting,  for  the  sake  of  argument,  that  he  was  to  die  for 
the  people),  by  his  death  he  should  have  borne  our  sufferings, 
by  his  maiiyrdom  he  should  have  healed  the  tribulations  and 
the  great  sicknesses  of  Israel  among  the  nations :  and  so  tho 
people  would  confess  it,  if  it  could  come  to  believe  it ;  but  it 
cannot  say  so  at  any  time  witli  truth,  as  after  his  death  Israel 
not  only  was  not  healed  of  its  tribulations,  but  experienced  them 
even  in  a  greater  degree,  and  still  suffers  them  at  the  hands  of 
those  who  in  the  world  believed  in  him. 

But  Christianity  seeing  that  in  this  sense  it  could  not  verify 
the  prophecy  of  this  subject,  has  recourse,  as  it  is  wont  to  do, 
to  the  spiritual,  and  says  that  he  bare  our  suflferings  and  sick- 
nesses in  the  sense  of  our  crimes  and  the  punishments  we  de- 
served for  them,  that  this  is  the  spiritual  healing,  Israel  and  the 
nations  being  fi'eed  from  the  debt  of  original  sin,  as  well  as  of 
that  which  we  have  created  anew  l)y  our  actual  crimes.  Let  us 
examine  if  this  is  true,  and  if  the  Avorld  experiences  this  spiri- 
tual benefit  through  his  death. 

In  the  first  place,  as  for  the  sin  of  Adam,  Israel  and  the 
nations  remain  as  they  were  before,  without  that  stain  and  debt 
of  mankind  being  washed  away  or  expiated  by  his  blood,  for 
they  themselves  confess  that  all  are  born  infected  with  original 
sin,  enemies  of  God,  slaves  of  the  devil,  whom  God  could  not 
purify  although  he  made  himself  man  and  died  to  make  atone- 
ment ;  and  they  believe  this  to  be  so  certain,  that  they  hold  as 
an  article  of  faith  that  children  who  die  unbajitized  are  deprived 
eternally  of  glory,  being  condemned  to  Umbo  for  the  sin  of 
Adam.  And  in  the  opinion  of  the  Protestants  the  children  of 
parents  who  are  not  Christians  are  condemned  to  hell  for  ever 
for  the  original  sin  which  they  did  not  commit ;  so  that  they 
confess  that  human  nature  could  not  be  healed  of  its  spiritual 


liii.  4,  5.]  ISAAC  OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  465 

sicknesses  ami  sufferings  by  the  death  of  that  Messiah  :  accord- 
ingly it  cannot  be  this  man  of  whom  the  prophet  speaks. 

And  the  answer  they  make  to  escape  from  this  argument  is 
not  a  little  amusing,  namely,  that  he  for  his  part  healed  all,  but 
it  is  necessary  that  each  one  should  believe  that  he  was  healed 
through  his  death,  for  if  he  does  not  understand  it  to  be  so,  he 
will  remain  in  a  worse  state  than  before ;  this  healing  therefoi'e 
rests  in  the  conception  of  the  patient,  and  should  he  die  in 
childhood  or  be  born  an  idiot,  he  cannot  be  healed  because  he 
cannot  conceive  that  he  gets  healed;  the  necessary  consequence 
is,  that  the  devil  takes  them  and  they  remain  everlastingly  in 
hell,  atoning  for  the  apple  which  they  did  not  eat,  unless  indeed 
it  is  not  a  sin  that  his  father  and  mother  or  any  other  Christian 
should  think  or  believe  that  the  child  was  cured  of  his  sin 
through  Christ ;  because  this  belief,  although  not  his  own,  may 
avail  him,  and  if  there  is  no  one  to  take  this  trouble  for  him, 
he  must  go,  as  the  Papist  maintains,  to  limbo,  or  to  hell  as  the 
Protestant  says. 

Since  no  spiritual  cure  is  experienced  of  the  actual  sins  which 
men  voluntarily  commit,  for  Israel  and  the  nations,  ]\Ioham- 
medans  and  Christians,  as  well  as  those  that  are  called  heathens, 
commit  the  same  sins  as  before  his  death,  they  follow  miserably 
the  frailty  of  their  appetite,  the  same  inclination  to  vice,  and  the 
same  aversion  to  rational  uprightness,  which  are  the  sufferings 
and  infirmities  caused  by  Adam's  sin ;  and  they  follow  human 
malice,  and,  iu  short,  as  many  are  condemned  to  hell  now  as 
before  his  death  and  passion,  nay,  even  many  more,  because 
Israel  with  the  divine  law  of  ]\Ioses,  and  the  nations  of  the 
world  with  the  law  of  nature  could  be  saved  by  observing  them, 
but  since  his  death  none  can  be  saved  (in  their  opinion)  except 
by  believing  in  him  and  his  incredible  mysteries.  And  the 
Papists  deny  salvation  to  all,  although  Christians  with  all  their 
heart  and  soul,  who  are  not  in  everything  followers  of  the 
Roman  Church,  and  of  these  only  those  who  do  not  die  in  sin, 
and  at  least  can  obtain  absolution  from  another  man  to  be  saved, 

H  h 


466  ISAAC    OUOBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [liii.  4,  5. 

wlncb  with  respect  to  the  Avorlcl  moiiiis  almost  uone ;  ami  tliua 
Bernard,  a  doctor  of  the  church,  understood  it,  who  writes  in  one 
of  his  revelations  that  on  that  day  so  many  millions  of  people 
liad  died  in  the  univeise,  and  only  a  good  old  woman  and  a 
monk  of  his  order  had  been  saved.  And  if  all  this  coming  of 
God,  this  death  and  passion,  were  for  no  other  end  but  to  save 
mankind,  and  the  Messiah  was  to  obtain  all  that,  how  did  he 
obtain  it  according  to  what  they  preach  1  how  did  he  bear  our 
sufferings  and  our  infirmities  ?  how  did  he  heal  the  world  of 
their  sins  and  the  pains  of  hell  which  they  deserve  1  Where  is 
this  redemption  of  souls  ?  these  sins  which  he  to(jk  away  1  that 
health  and  medicine  that  we  got  because  of  him,  through  his 
passion  and  death  1  Where  is  the  kingdom  of  God  preached  by 
the  Gospel  at  every  point,  proclaiming  that  the  kingdom  of  the 
devil  is  already  ended  '?  How  can  the  devil  reign  more  than  by 
taking  off  to  hell  almost  all  mankind,  as  they  confess  1 

When  the  Lord  shall  reign  in  his  world,  as  he  has  promised, 
at  the  time  of  the  redemption,  and  his  Messiah  shall  ])e  Adonai 
One,  and  his  name  One,  and  all  creatures  shall  know  him,  and 
love  him,  and  his  own  people  more  than  all  creatures,  he  will 
remove  all  idols  from  off  the  eai-th,  and  so  war,  falsehood,  and 
discord,  all  will  be  peace,  love  of  God,  and  observance  of  his 
divine  decrees,  the  law  of  nature  among  the  nations,  the  divine 
law  in  Israel,  as  a  kingdom  of  Levites,  a  kingdom  of  God. 
Such  medicine,  made  by  the  omnipotence  of  the  living  God  him- 
self, Israel  and  all  the  nations  will  receive,  and  if  by  the  death 
of  this  person  this  had  happened  in  the  world,  they  would  have 
a  right  to  say  that  he  bare  our  sufferings  and  our  infirmities, 
and  his  wounds  had  been  our  healing ;  but  it  was  not  so,  and 
could  not  be  so,  since  it  is  only  the  Lord  God  who  pardons, 
saves,  redeems,  and  no  one  else  :  and  if  the  Messiah  was  to  be 
as  they  undci'stand  it  in  this  chapter,  this  ought  to  have  hap- 
pened on  his  death  ;  but  since  it  has  not  happened,  all  that  can 
be  said  of  him  is  that  he  died,  but  not  that  he  was  Israel's 
Messiah  promised  by  the  prophets. 


liii.  ().]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DK    CASTRO.  467 

"  Tlie  servant  of  God  of  whom  tlie  prophet  speaks  can  of 
necessity  do  no  evil  act ;  no  falsehood,  deceit,  or  perverse  doc- 
trine can  issue  from  his  lips,  or  be  the  cause  of  others  intro- 
ducing it  into  the  world;  now  this  cannot  be  maintained,  I  mean, 
proved,  of  the  person  whom  they  proclaim  :  because,  giving  the 
Gospel  credit  as  a  witness  on  the  same  side,  he  did  many  things 
contrary  to  the  law  of  Moses,  by  which  he  was  bound  as  a  Jew. 
He  said  other  things  which  proved  false.  In  the  first  place,  he 
transgi-essed  the  divine  law,  he  and  his  disciples  breaking  the 
Sabbath  rest,  permitting  the  plucking  the  ears  of  corn  on  pre- 
text of  necessity,  to  the  scandal  of  the  Israelites,  though  it  was 
not  necessary  to  satisfy  hunger  by  that  means,  and  they  were  in 
no  danger  of  life  in  suffering  it,  and  they  might  have  gone  to  the 
village  and  asked  for  bread  in  God's  name ;  then,  on  the  Sabbath 
they  were  not  allowed  to  go  so  far  from  the  town ;  but  he  con- 
sented and  even  approved  of  plucking  the  ears,  which  is  the 
same  thing  as  cutting  w'ood,  for  which  crime  the  Lord  com- 
manded another  man  in  the  desert  to  be  stoned.  He  absolved 
of  her  crime  the  woman  convicted  of  adultery,  whom  the  divine 
decree  condemns  to  certain  death,  for  no  better  reason  than 
asking  the  witnesses  if  they  were  sinners,  as  if  to  prove  a 
crime  required  the  witnesses  to  be  saints,  so  that  there  would 
never  be  witnesses  against  the  guilty,  for  no  man  can  affirm 
of  himself  that  he  is  righteous  and  never  sinned ;  but  he  said, 
'  He  that  is  without  sin  among  you,  let  him  accuse  her ; '  and 
as  no  one  dared  to  say  that  he  was  a  righteous  man,  he  sent  her 
away  in  peace,  combatting  by  an  unlawful  sympathy  the  divine 
law.  He  said  that  what  entered  by  the  mouth  did  not  defile 
the  soul,  though  the  Lord  has  said  so  many  times  about  for- 
bidden food:  'Bo  not  defile  yoxir  souls;'  and  yet  he  and  his 
followers,  more  jjarticularly  Paul,  admit  that  the  apple  of  Para- 
dise defiled  not  only  Adam,  by  whose  mouth  it  entered,  but  also 
all  mankind,  simply  because  God  had  forbidden  it ;  consequently 
it  is  false  to  say  that  what  enters  by  the  mouth  does  not  defile 
the  soul. 

H  h  2 


468  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [liii.  lO. 

He  said,  moreover,  that  power  had  been  given  him  in  heaven 
and  on  earth,  though  the  Lord  has  said  that  he  will  not  give  his 
glory  to  another.  He  said  things  which  proved  to  be  false. 
Being  asked  by  the  apostles  how  it  was  that,  being  the  Messiah, 
he  did  not  unite  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel,  a  question  surely 
very  necessary  and  agreeable  to  the  Holy  Scriptures,  he  answered 
that  they  had  no  concern  in  knowing  the  day  and  the  hour,  but 
he  assured  them  that  that  generation  in  which  they  lived  would 
not  pass  without  his  returning  in  the  clouds  of  heaven  for  that 
purpose,  wherefoi'e  the  church  in  those  first  hundred  years  ex- 
pected with  veiy  certain  faith  that  he  would  come  as  he  had 
promised ;  on  strength  of  which  in  the  time  of  TertuUian  gi-eat 
rogations  and  pi'ocessions  were  made  throughout  the  countries 
of  Christendom,  but  he  never  returned,  nor  was  what  he  had 
said  fulfilled  or  verified.  Afterwards  his  followers  formed  in 
his  name  many  dogmas  repugnant  to  truth, — they  invented  a 
plurality  of  persons,  contrary  to  the  very  simple  unity  of  their 
Creator,  who  being  infinitely  One,  can  in  no  sense  be  many ; 
although  this  falsehood  was  published  many  years  later.  And 
what  falsehood  can  be  greater  than  that  of  confining  him,  whom 
heaven  and  earth  cannot  contain,  within  the  trammels  of 
humanity,  within  the  narrow  limits  of  a  womb,  the  small  com- 
pass of  a  wafer,  affirming  on  his  word  that  that  is  and  there 
dwells  the  mighty  God  as  he  is  present  in  heaven,  converted 
into  a  crumb  of  bread  and  a  drop  of  wine.  The  Gentile  adora- 
tion of  Bacchus  as  the  god  of  wine  was  a  great  deceit,  but  a 
still  gi'eater  deceit  is  that  of  adoring  a  little  wine  as  the  God  of 
all.  How  then  can  the  verse  be  verified  which  says,  There  was 
no  deceit  in  his  mouth  ? 

^"1/  he  offer  his  soul  in  atonement  he  shall  see  seed,  etc.  Cipri- 
ano  de  Valera  renders  it,  he  shall  see  lineaye,  which  is  the 
same  as  seed,  descendants,  or  posterity.  Let  us  see  then  if  this 
verse  can  be  applied  to  their  alleged  Messiah.  The  prophet 
promises  three  things  of  the  subject  or  servant  of  God  whom  he 
there  introduces,  and  all  under  a  condition.     The  condition  is. 


liii.  lo.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  469 

if  he  offer  his  soul  in  atonement  for  sin ;  if,  at  the  risk  of  his 
life,  he  will  con-ect  himself  of  his  transgressions,  loving  the 
Lord  his  God  more  than  his  own  soul  or  life,  he  will  obtain 
the  three  following  blessings :  he  will  see  his  offspring,  genera- 
tion, and  fortunate  progeny,  which  is  the  same  blessing  which 
the  Lord  gave  to  the  patriarchs,  and  they  to  their  children. 
Tlie  second  blessing  is,  that  he  will  live  a  long  time  on  the  face 
of  the  earth,  a  blessing  which  the  Lord  gave  his  cliosen  and  the 
obpervers  of  his  divine  precepts ;  the  shortening  of  life,  on  the 
contrary,  being  the  punishment  with  which  he  threatens  trans- 
gressors ;  and  thus  to  the  subject  of  this  pi'ophecy,  as  a  reward 
for  his  tribulations  and  sufferings,  is  promised  that  continuing 
with  contempt  for  his  own  life  in  such  a  holy  endurance,  he  will 
extend  the  days  of  his  life,  will  be  preserved  alive  in  this  world  : 
so  reads  Valera,  who  translates  it  thus,  He  will  live  long  days  ; 
and  in  the  same  manner  the  leamied  Arias  Montanus  also.  The 
third  blessing  is,  that  the  will  of  the  Lord  will  prosper  in  his 
hand,  that  what  the  Lord  wishes,  what  is  agreeable  to  him  in 
liis  world,  will  be  effected  through  his  servant, — for  although 
the  will  of  the  Lord  must  always  be  carried  into  effect,  he  says 
that  this  will  be  by  means  of  his  sei-vant, — using  him  as  an 
efficacious  and  sufficient  instrument  for  that  end.  This  being 
granted,  let  us  examine  if  these  three  things  can  be  affirmed 
of  that  man  who  they  say  offered  his  soul  for  sin.  The  first, 
which  is,  he  mill  see  his  seed,  cannot  fit  him,  for  he  died,  as  they 
affirm,  without  offspring  or  descendants  ;  but  to  this  they  an- 
swer that  he  had  a  spiritual  seed  by  genei'ating  the  Christian 
church,  and  this,  not  natural  children,  must  be  understood  by 
seed.  This  answer  is  contrary  to  the  sacred  text,  and  is  the  only 
means  of  escaping  from  the  difficulty,  because  in  Holy  Scripture 
the  word  semen  never  signifies  spiritual  children,  but  those  after 
the  flesh.  Son  signifies  many  times  spiritual  son,  but  seed  never 
anything  but  natural  propagation.  Cipriano  de  Valera  trans- 
lates semen  by  '  lineage,'  which  is  the  proper  natural  descendants, 
and  nobody  says  that  there  is  a  spiritual  lineage,  accordingly  it  is 


470  ISAAC   OROBIO   UE   CASTRO.  [liii.  lo. 

necessaiy  that  this  person  should  have  a  natural  posterity  to 
succeed  him,  which  that  man  had  not,  and  therefore  this  circum- 
stance of  the  verse  does  not  api>ly  to  him.  Then  the  second, 
which  is,  lie  ivill  prolong  his  daijs,  or  as  Valera  says,  '  he  will 
live  long  days,'  is  still  less  fulfilled  in  their  Messiah,  because  if 
he  died,  as  they  say,  at  thirty-three  years  of  age,  it  cannot  well 
be  affirmed  that  he  shall  live  a  long  life,  dying  in  the  best  period 
of  his  youth  :  this  is  called  dying  cut  down  by  the  hand  of 
God  :  how  then  can  lengthening  of  life,  enjoying  the  blessing  of  a 
long  life,  be  made  to  agiee  with  being  cut  down  in  the  best  of 
his  days  'I  and  if  they  should  say  that  in  another  world  he 
pi-olongs  his  days  by  living  eternally,  that  is  no  particular  pre- 
rogative, but  tlie  universal  lot  of  all  souls,  even  of  those  con- 
demned, who  will  never  die,  but  live  eternally,  either  in  pain  or 
in  glory ;  accordingly,  '  he  will  prolong  his  days '  is  in  no  way 
fulfilled  in  him.  The  third  is,  that  tlis  will  of  Adcnai  will  pros- 
2^er  in  his  hand,  or  through  his  hands,  which  still  less  can  be 
applied  to  their  purpose,  for  as  we  see  in  all  the  places  we  quote 
about  the  Messiah,  it  is  the  will  of  the  Lord  that  he  should  con- 
gregate Israel  from  all  parts  of  the  world ;  that  all  nations  should 
be  converted  to  his  divine  worship  and  adoration,  without  false 
sects  or  idolatries ;  that  sins  should  end,  and  that  all  human 
creatures  should  enjoy  a  perpetual  peace,  love,  and  spiritual  and 
temporal  tranquillity ;  this  was  and  is  the  will  of  the  Lord,  and 
that  which  the  prophet  says  will  prosper  through  the  hand  of 
that  servant  of  whom  he  speaks.  Even  the  Gospel  says  so, 
where  it  states  that  the  angel  declared  it  to  Joseph  when  he 
fled  jealous  of  the  premature  pregnancy  of  his  wife  Mary,  saying 
to  him  that  she  would  give  birth  to  a  son,  who  should  be  called 
Jesus,  and  that  he  would  take  away  the  sins  of  his  people 
(Matt.  i.  2i).  And  John  in  his  Gospel  says,  speaking  of  the 
same,  '  Behold  the  Lamb  of  God,  behold  him  who  takes  away 
the  sins  of  the  world'  (i.  29).  They  cannot  then  deny  even  from 
their  Gospel  that  such  was  the  will  of  God,  and  that  it  had  to 
prosper  and  have  its  effect  by  the  hand  of  his  Messiah.     But 


liii.  II.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  471 

how  will  they  ajiply  this  to  him  whom  they  introduce  and  adore, 
with  whose  advent  all  the  conti'ary  has  happened,  and  up  to 
this  day  nothing  of  what  is  the  will  of  God  has  been  performed 
or  has  prospered  ?  Now  if  he  was  promised  and  sent  to  Israel, 
it  was  the  will  of  God  either  that  Israel  should  kill  him  and  be 
lost  for  the  sake  of  the  Messiah,  or  that  it  should  receive  him  and 
enjoy  the  blessings  and  benefits  of  his  advent ;  the  former  is 
absurd  and  contrary  to  divine  goodness  and  truthfulness,  and 
the  Holy  Scriptures  ;  and  as  for  the  latter,  the  will  of  the  Lord 
did  not  prosper  by  the  hand  of  that  man  and  was  not  fulfilled  ; 
since  Israel  by  denying  him  and  killing  him  increased  its  sins 
and  negotiated,  as  they  say,  its  own  utter  perdition  and  ruin  ; 
consequently  he  did  not  remove  the  sins  of  his  people,  as  the 
angel  in  the  Gospel  says  to  Joseph  ;  nor  is  he  the  Lamb  of  God 
who  removed  the  sins  of  the  world,  as  John  says.  Admitting 
that  on  account  of  this  child,  this  lamb,  the  perdition  of  his 
people  followed,  how  do  his  followers  preach  him,  if  it  be  not 
the  same  thing  God  wishing  to  save  it  and  condemn  it  by 
the  same  person  1  And  if  God  wished  to  save  it  by  means  of  the 
Messiah,  and  this  salvation  did  not  happen,  but  the  contrary, 
the  prophet  should  rather  have  said,  '  And  the  will  of  God  will 
not  prosper  in  his  hand;'  since  in  the  rest  of  the  woi'ld  outside 
Israel,  of  which  John  says,  'This  is  the  Lamb  of  God  which  taketh 
away  the  sins  of  the  world,'  the  will  of  Adonai  prospered  still 
less ;  since  the  world  that  God  wished  to  redeem,  and  extricate 
from  the  snares  of  sin  and  the  power  of  the  devil,  has  re- 
mained, as  we  have  said  above  and  is  manifestly  seen,  full  of  the 
same  abominations,  prevarications,  and  sins ;  consequently,  this 
Lamb  of  God  did  not  take  away  the  sins  of  the  world,  nor  did 
the  will  of  the  Lord  prosper  in  his  hand,  as  it  has  to,  according 
to  the  prophet,  by  the  servant  of  God  of  whom  he  speaks. 

"  By  Jiis  tvisdom  my  rightmus  servant  shall  justify  many. 
No  wisdom  did  that  man  teach  many,  there  was  nothing  he 
himself  said,  or  which  the  Evangelists  wrote  in  his  name  that 
was  just  and  holy,  that  the  Lord  had  not  already  said  before  in 


472  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [liii.  ii. 

his  divine  law  and  the  prophets,  without  their  being  able  to  add 
to  the  divine  hiw  anything  good  for  the  sijiritual  life  of  man  ; 
wherefore  the  doctrine  or  wisdom  to  justify  the  soul  did  not 
spring  from  the  Messiah  or  his  disciples,  but  from  that  which 
the  Lord  revealed  to  Moses  in  the  divine  law  which  he  gave  his 
people ;  and  what  they  added  is  nothing  else  than  an  affectation 
of  holiness  contrary  to  the  natural  reason  itself,  and  prejudicial 
to  human  government.  Among  many  things  which  we  omit,  let 
the  case  serve  as  an  exami)le  in  which  he  did  not  permit  a  son's 
last  act  of  piety  towards  his  own  dead  father,  to  whom,  when  he 
wished  to  go  and  give  him  burial,  he  said,  '  Leave  the  dead  to 
bury  their  dead,  but  come  thou  and  follow  me'  (Matt.  viii.  21,22); 
an  action  surely,  let  them  comment  on  it  as  they  please,  most 
impious  and  scandalous.  He  bids  another  youth,  who  was 
seeking  for  the  way  to  perfection,  sell  all  he  possessed  and  give 
it  to  the  poor  (Matt.  xix.  21);  a  doctrine  contraiy  to  reason, 
since  the  temporal  goods  which  the  Lord  grants  must  be  grate- 
fully received,  we  should  return  thanks  for  them  to  the  divine 
goodness  that  has  been  thus  pleased  to  allot  us  a  part  of  its 
bounties,  should  use  them  with  sobriety,  and  relieve  with  alms 
the  necessities  of  om*  neighbour  by  sharing  them  witli  him,  but 
not  so  as  to  impoverish  ourselves.  And  thus  the  Lord  says  by 
the  prophet,  'Share  thy  bread  with  the  poor'  (Is.  Iviii.  7),  but 
he  does  not  say  give  him  all  the  bread,  for  that  would  be  a 
foolish  and  irrational  charity.  Still  less  tolerable  was  what  the 
apostles  afterwards  commanded,  that  all  convei'ts  to  Christianity 
should  sell  all  they  possessed  and  entrust  the  money  to  them- 
selves, as  it  is  said  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  'And  they  sold  all 
that  they  possessed,  and  placed  the  price  at  the  apostles'  feet' 
(iv-  34>  35)-  Tiiis  was  a  doctrine  repugnant  to  the  government 
of  mankind,  for  without  some  difference  in  temporal  goods  no 
one  would  be  willing  to  work  to  acquire  them,  and  if  all  were 
equal  no  one  would  discharge  those  servile  offices  which  human 
society  requires  for  its  preservation,  and  it  would  amount  to 
nothing  else  than  opening  the  gate  to  idleness,  the  mother  of  all 


liii.  II.]  ISAAC   OUOBIO    DE    CASTRO.  473 

vices.  And  they  not  only  by  this  means  introduced  idleness,  but 
also  by  teaching  that  no  one  should  take  thought  for  the  morrow, 
but  should  live  joyfully  without  pi'oviding  clothes  to  dress  in, 
or  food  to  live  by ;  that  the  lilies  without  asking  for  it  grow  up 
better  adorned  than  Solomon  on  his  throne ;  that  the  birds  of 
heaven  are  fed  and  gi'ow  fat  without  gathering  in  the  wheat 
or  providing  for  the  future ;  that  God,  who  takes  care  of  these 
creatures,  knows  what  men  need,  and  will  give  it  them.  This 
wisdom  is  contrary  to  human  providence,  and  is  tempting  Pro- 
vidence to  sustain  mankind  miraculously  without  man  using  his 
reason,  which  the  Lord  has  given  him  for  his  government,  both 
temporal  and  spiritual,  thus  preferring  to  institute  a  rabble  of 
mendicants  instead  of  an  honest  and  providently-managed 
government.  The  evangelical  wisdom  affected  humility  :  it  bids 
one,  if  offended  with  a  slap  on  the  face,  offer  the  other  cheek 
to  receive  another  blow ;  an  uni'easonable  piece  of  advice  and 
out  of  character  with  all  perfection,  for  to  suffer  blow  and  insult 
with  patience,  to  bear  no  hati'ed  and  not  to  seek  revenge  on  the 
offender,  fulfils  in  man  all  the  perfection  of  the  spiritual  life, 
and  what  the  Lord  commanded  in  his  divine  law,  '  Do  not  bear 
hati'ed  nor  seek  revenge.'  But  to  wish  purposely  to  be  more 
offended,  is  not  consistent  with  human  intellect,  or  that  for  the 
sake  of  practising  humility  one  s^hould  offer  one's  neighbour  the 
opportunity,  if  in  a  moment  of  irritation  he  sins  by  giving  a 
blow,  of  committing  sin  again  by  repeating  it,  and  this  time 
a  gi-eater  sin ;  for  the  more  the  offended  party  shews  himself 
humble,  the  more  the  guilt  of  the  offender  is  increased,  which 
would  be  avoided  by  his  suffering  humbly  and  I'etiring,  careful 
that  his  enemy  may  not  sin  by  continuing  to  give  way  to  the 
effects  of  his  wrath.  The  wisdom  of  the  Gospel  teaches  that  it 
is  not  sufficient,  not  to  hate  one's  enemy,  but  that  one  must  love 
him  and  all  those  who  have  done  us  harm ;  whereas  the  divine 
wisdom  is  contented  with  our  not  bearing  hatred  or  not  seek- 
ing for  revenge  on  our  enemies ;  it  did  not  bid  us  love  them, 
because  such  a  command  would  be  neither  just  nor  possible; 


4,74  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO,  [Hii.   ii. 

one  can  love  only  what  is  good,  and  no  one  can  conceive  it  good 
to  be  offended  and  to  love  it ;  it  suffices  not  to  hate  it  as  bad : 
and  if  we  are  not  obliged  to  love  those  with  whom  we  have 
never  spoken  or  communicated,  for  there  is  no  reason  which 
leads  us  to  love  them,  how  shall  we  love  our  enemies?  It  is 
true  that  we  must  be  charitable  to  them,  feel  for  their  misfor- 
tunes, and  help  them  if  in  need  of  us ;  this,  however,  is  not  to  love 
our  enemies  because  they  do  us  harm,  but  not  to  hate  them,  and 
avenge  ourselves  by  not  wishing  to  do  them  good ;  but,  on  the 
contrary,  to  attend  to  their  necessities  by  the  general  precept  of 
charity  towaids  all,  without  mentioning  or  recollecting  their 
enmity.  This  is  the  wisdom  of  the  Law,  the  other  is  that  of 
men  who  affected  more  piety  than  the  Law  itself ;  but  Christi- 
anity now  acknowledges  all  this,  and  practises  as  we  have  said, 
since  there  is  no  one  who  does  not  seek  the  means  of  his  own 
maintenance,  no  one  who  sells  all  that  he  possesses  and  gives  it 
to  the  poor,  no  one  who  offers  his  face  for  a  second  blow,  no 
one,  however  pious,  who  loves  his  enemies.  Its  doctors  now 
say  that  they  are  advice,  and  not  precepts,  but  still  it  remains 
doubtful  whether  they  are  good  advice;  although  the  Pro- 
testants would  have  them  to  be  precepts,  yet  up  to  this  day 
no  one  observes  them  or  justifies  himself  by  this  wisdom,  except 
a  few  bare-footed  friars  and  Capuchins,  who  have  given  up 
everything  to  observe  this  evangelical  wisdom,  and  raise  them- 
selves to  higher  stations  by  means  of  Christianity,  living,  as  they 
say,  an  evangelical  life :  but  not  so,  however,  the  head  of  the 
church  and  his  hierarchies,  whose  riches,  majesty,  sovereignty, 
rivalry,  revengefulness,  ambition,  and  every  quality  opposed  to 
the  wisdom  of  the  Gospel  are  not  considered  to  be  against  this 
wisdom,  which,  like  that  of  the  Messiah  which  it  preaches, 
never  justified  nor  will  justify  anybody.  The  principal  point 
in  which  this  Christian  wisdom  has  always  consisted  is  in  de- 
preciating and  running  down  the  greatness  of  the  divine  law 
which  the  Lord  promulgated  on  Sinai,  because  that  which  they 
invented  was  not  compatible  with  it.     Paul  says  tliat  it  was 


liii.  II.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  475 

deadly,  that  it  gave  no  holiness  noi'  justification,  nor  eternal  life 
to  Israel ;  that  it  operated  on  men  no  better  than  a  curse ;  that 
sin  entered  the  world  through  the  Law ;  that  all  were  under 
a  curse  through  it ;  and  other  similar  blasphemies,  of  which  his 
whole  theology  is  composed.  This  is  the  wisdom  which  emanated 
from  that  Messiah  and  is  so  much  extolled  by  his  followers ; 
he  who  best  knows  how  to  defend  these  dogmas  is  the  wisest ; 
he  who  writes  with  the  greatest  acumen  to  destroy  the  observ- 
ance of  the  divine  law,  and  who  is  most  ostentatious  in  depre- 
ciating by  his  own  wisdom  the  greatness  of  that  which  the  Lord 
taught  his  people  on  Sinai  is  the  most  righteous ;  but  the  Lord 
himself  declai'es  its  quality,  saying  at  the  time  of  its  prcimulga- 
tion,  'This  is  your  wisdom,  this  is  your  understanding;'  by 
this  wisdom  the  righteous  servant  of  the  Loi'd  will  make  many 
righteous,  not  by  that  wisdom  which  flooded  the  world  after  the 
advent  of  that  man,  filling  it  with  various  religions  repugnant 
to  liis  unity  and  the  immensity  of  his  infinite  and  impassible 
divine  existence ;  consequently  he  did  not  fulfil  the  verse  which 
says  that  that  servant  of  God  would  make  many  righteous  by 
his  wisdom. 

It  may  be  gathered  fi'om  all  that  has  been  said  that  the 
fifty-third  chapter,  even  if  understood  of  the  Messiah,  as  Chris- 
tianity alleges,  still  cannot  be  applied  to  him  in  whom  they 
believe,  since  what  we  said  before  about  the  redemption  of  Israel 
and  the  offices  of  the  true  Messiah,  and  what  Isaiah  wrote  iu 
this  chapter  about  the  servant  of  God  of  whom  he  speaks,  were 
not  fulfilled  in  him  whom  they  introduce  as  such ;  so  that  in 
whatever  way  they  explain  it,  this  chapter  in  no  way  serves 
their  pui'pose.  Nevertheless,  more  to  satisfy  the  curiosity  of 
some  people,  than  to  meet  the  wants  of  their  conscience,  we 
shall  state  how  this  chapter  must  be  understood,  and  who  it  is 
of  whom  the  prophet  speaks  in  it. 


476  ISAAC  OROBIO   DE   CASTRO.  [Hi,  liii. 

Explanation  of  the  fifty-thikd  chapter  of  the  prophet  Isaiah. 

For  the  more  exact  uiulerstaiidiug  of  this  chapter  we  must 
remark  that  the  prophetical  books  are  not  divided  into  chap- 
ters, but  form  one  coutinuouR  piece  of  writing  from  the  begin- 
ning to  the  end  of  the  prophecy ;  only  for  the  sake  of  greater 
ckMirness  and  facility  in  quoting  verses  they  were  divided  into 
chapters  either  by  Jerome  or  by  somebody  else  before  him  ;  and 
therefore  when  a  chapter  ends  it  must  not  be  infeiTcd  from  that 
that  the  prophet  ends  there  with  the  discourse  or  subject  on 
which  he  is  engaged,  and  that  he  treats  of  a  different  matter  in 
the  following ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  that  the  same  subject  is 
continued,  and  that  the  prophecy  was  subsequently  divided 
into  chapters.  AVhenever,  therefore,  we  wish  to  understand  a 
chapter,  we  should  examine  what. the  preceding  and  following 
chapters  contain,  >yhat  subject  is  treated  in  them,  and  the 
pur])ort  of  it,  so  as  to  see  if  the  same  subject  is  treated  in 
what  follows. 

The  pi-ophet  had  spoken  at  great  length  and  with  perfect 
clearness  of  the  redemption  of  Isi-ael  in  the  fifty-first  chapter, 
and  continues  the  same  subject  in  the  fifty-second,  addressing 
the  people  of  Israel  and  the  holy  city  of  Jerusalem,  calling  on 
them  to  awake  from  their  sleep,  to  return  to  their  ancient 
vigour,  to  lay  aside  their  mourning  apparel  and  put  on  garments 
of  gladness,  to  shake  off  the  dust  of  their  ruins,  as  they  will  not 
only  be  restoi*ed  to  their  ancient  splendour,  but  their  city  will 
be  for  ever  holy  for  its  inhabitants,  and  will  never  more  be 
profaned  by  the  uncircumcised  Gentiles,  because  the  captivity 
of  Israel  is  now  ended,  and  being  redeemed  it  will  enjoy  liberty 
again.  The  prophet  continues  addressing  the  same  people,  not 
the  Gentiles,  who  would  honour  themselves  with  that  name, 
but  that  people  whom  he  led  out  of  Egypt,  and  scattered  among 
the  nations  for  its  sins,  as  is  shewn  by  verses  3-6,  9,  10;  and 
he  proceeds  to  pi-ediet  the  wonderful  effects  of  the  redemption, 
tliat  there  will  be  no  more  impurity  in  Israel,  or  in  the  sacred 


Hi.  13.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  477 

vessels  of  the  temple,  that  the  Israelites  will  no  longer  go  about 
with  haste  or  by  flight,  but  in  safety  and  confitk-uce,  guided  by 
God  himself,  who  will  gather  and  congregate  them  into  their 
holy  country ;  all  this  the  Lord  says  by  his  prophet  in  words 
so  clear  that  one  has  only  to  read  them  to  understand  them. 
And  the  Christian  cannot  deny  that  this  happiness  and  redemp- 
tion are  promised  to  the  true  Israel  whom  he  sent  to  sojourn  in 
Egypt  and  afterwards  brought  out  with  a  powerful  hand,  and 
not  to  the  Gentile  nations  who  never  dwelled  in  or  went  out  of 
Egypt,  and  who  are  called  in  this  verj^  place  impure  and  un- 
circumcised ;  nor  can  they  explain  it  of  the  retui-n  from  Baby- 
lon, by  what  we  have  already  proved,  and  because  not  one  of 
the  circumstances  to  which  reference  is  here  made  can  apply 
to  it,  either  the  holiness  and  purity  or  the  perpetuity  he  pro- 
mises when  the  impure  and  the  uncircumcised  shall  no  more 
enter  Jerusalem,  for,  on  the  contrary,  that  redemption  was  very 
different  to  the  one  here  promised  by  the  prophet  as  glorious 
and  wonderful  in  the  eyes  of  all  creatures,  bringing  the  utmost 
gi'eatness  to  the  holy  city  as  well  as  the  redeemed  people.  After 
depicting  the  redemption  of  Israel  as  the  Lord  has  decreed  it, 
the  prophet  continues  the  same  subject,  describing  the  state  in 
which  the  people  will  be  in  that  hajDpy  time,  both  with  regard 
to  itself  and  the  nations,  saying  in  the  thirteenth  verse,  ' BeJiold 
my  servant  shall  be  prosperous,  shall  he  exalted  and  extolled, 
and  raised  very  high.'  The  Lord  says,  My  people  whom  I 
furmerly  enslaved  in  Egj^it  and  afterwards  amongst  all  the 
nations,  being  now  freed  from  its  yoke,  shall  be  no  longer  their 
servant  but  mine ;  my  servant,  over  whom  all  the  nations  were 
pi'osperous  before,  shall  now  be  prosperous  himself,  and  as  they 
formerly  trampled  him  ilown,  humiliated  him,  laid  him  down 
like  dust  to  walk  on,  so  now  my  servant  shall  be  exalted. 
Therefore  he  said  before  :  '  Awake,  awake,  Jerusalem,  shake 
thyself  from  the  dust,'  that  thou  and  thy  people  may  be  exalted  ; 
and  if  in  captivity  he  suffered  contempt,  if  the  world  conspired 
to  dishonour  him  with  reproaches,  with  vile  and  false  evidence, 


478  ISAAC    OROBIO    DK    CASTRO.  [liii.  14. 

with  the  imputation  uf  abominations,  now  my  servant  shall  be 
exalted,  all  the  nations  who  blasphemed  him  vf\ih  their  abuse 
shall  celebrate  his  hajtpinoss  with  praises,  singing  a  new  song  to 
Adonai  who  hath  performed  truth  and  fulfilled  his  word  to  the 
house  of  Israel ;  and  so  his  people  will  be  exalted  among  the 
nations  of  the  whole  universe,  and  thus  Israel  will  be  a  king- 
dom of  priests,  the  chief  of  the  whole  world,  and  will  become 
a  subject  of  fame  and  praise  in  all  the  lands  of  his  captivity, 
as  the  Lord  promises  by  the  prophet  Zephaniah  (iii.  19,  20); 
and  so  Isaiah  says  in  this  verse,  repeating  the  idea  in  Ixiii.  9, 
and  before  in  xlix.  2 1 .  Israel  is  called  '  servant,'  a  name  by 
which  the  Lord  frequently  honours  those  whom  he  loves,  as  well 
individuals,  like  the  patriarchs  and  Moses,  as  the  whole  congre- 
gation of  Israel :  so  he  calls  it  by  the  same  Isaiah  in  many 
passages  (xli.  8,  9,  xliv.  i,  2,  21,  xlix.  3). 

It  is  unnecessary  to  multiply  further  proofs,  for  it  must  be 
considered  established,  that  throughout  Holy  Scripture  Israel 
is  styled  servant  of  God,  and  that  Isaiah  retained  this  desig- 
nation throughout  his  prophecy,  and  pi'eseives  it  in  the  first 
verse  of  our  exposition ;  announcing  the  redemption  and  the 
very  happy  state  that  will  follow  from  it,  he  says  that  Israel  iiis 
servant  will  be  prosperous ;  and  so  he  promised  before  by  the 
same  Isaiah  (xlviii.  15). 

^*  Israel  being  miraculously  raised  to  such  greatness,  and 
declared  God's  servant  in  the  jfresence  of  the  nations,  the  pro- 
phet contemplates  the  wonder  and  fear  that  will  fall  upon  them, 
after  having  known  it  fur  so  man}'  centuries  as  an  abased, 
miserable  people,  in  thcii-  opinion,  forsaken  by  God,  so  much  so 
that  they  themselves  wondered  how,  after  having  been  a  loved 
and  chosen  people,  his  punishment  reached  such  extreme 
severity ;  which  wonder  compelled  the  nations  to  enquire  wliat 
sin  Israel  could  have  committed  so  grave  that  should  compel 
divine  justice  to  such  lasting  indignation,  the  most  astute,  the 
Christians,  believing  that  his  crime  could  have  been  nothing 
lebs  than  the  murder  of  the  incarnate  God  himself;  so  much 


lii,  liii.]  ISAAC  orobio  de  castro.  479 

did  the  nations  wonder  at  Israel  in  its  long  and  painful  cap- 
tivity :  and  therefore  the  prophet  says,  As  many  wondered  at 
thee;  so  the  Lord  had  foretold  in  Leviticus  xxvi.  32,  and  in 
the  same  manner  Ezekiel  v.  15.  He  gives  next  the  reason  why 
the  nations  wondered  at  the  sufferings  and  miseries  of  the  people, 
because  they  saw  its  foi'm  marred  beyond  that  of  man,  and 
his  appearance  unworthy  of  the  children  of  man,  so  di^figui-ed 
that  they  did  not  appear  to  be  a  people  or  nation,  nor  to  parti- 
cipate in  human  nature,  nor  as  individuals  to  be  reputed  men ; 
nor  did  they  shew  any  manly  vigour,  but  a  submission  so  humble 
towards  all  nations  that  tliey  never  raised  their  hand  in  their 
own  defence,  and  thus  did  not  seem  to  be  of  the  same 
species.  It  is  therefore  said  that  its  aspect  was  marred  more 
than  that  of  man,  and  its  form  more  than  that  of  the  sons  of 
man ;  no  quality  shone  in  them  to  indicate  their  being  either 
sons  of  man,  or  of  the  same  nature  as  other  men,  but  they 
seemed  inferior  to  brute  animals,  for  those  defend  themselves 
against  their  persecutor  ;  but  persecuted  Israel  was  never  moved 
to  its  own  defence,  and  therefore  the  same  prophet  called  it 
worm  in  chapter  xli.  14,  'Fear  not,  thou  worm  of  Jacob,'  who 
art  no  man  nor  like  a  man  among  the  nations,  but  like  a  worm 
which,  by  reason  of  its  littleness,  is  not  able  to  resist  or  to  strive 
and  defend  itself  against  its  oppressor.  But  when  it  is  re- 
deemed, then  it  will  no  longer  be  a  worm,  but  valiant  and 
manly;  so  the  Lord  promises  in  the  chapter  and  verse  quoted, 
depicting  to  the  eyes  of  the  nations  both  states,  that  of  humilia- 
tion and  that  of  its  highest  grandeur  :  '  Fear  not,  worm  of 
Jacob,  men  of  Israel ;'  the  former  meaning,  in  captivity  like 
a  worm,  the  latter  in  the  redemption  like  men.  When  the 
nations  shall  see  the  people  of  Israel  in  this  state,  they  Avill 
remember  his  miserable  condition  among  them  for  so  many 
centuries,  when  he  was  without  the  form  of  children  of  men, 
and  his  appearance  so  marred  that  it  retained  not  even  the 
shadow  of  man,  but  rather  was  that  of  the  humblest  worm  of 
the  earth;  no  action  was  seen  in  him  to  indicate  that  nobility 


480  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [Hi.  15. 

which  naturally  belongs  to  human  nature,  he  was  always  so 
patient  and  defenceless  against  injury,  reproach,  and  persecu- 
tion ;  therefore  many  nations  wondered  at  him,  his  appearance 
being  marred  more  than  any  man.  And  in  this  state  Isaiah 
portrayed  him  in  the  first  chapter,  sa}'ing,  '  From  the  sole  of  the 
foot  even  to  the  head  there  is  no  soundness  in  it,'  etc.,  which  is 
the  same  as  his  appearance  being  marred  more  than  any  man. 
If  the  nations  wondered  at  Israel's  change  from  being  the  people 
of  God,  to  being  a  scattered  and  captive  people,  without  form 
or  resemblance  of  its  ancient  splendour,  much  more  will  they 
wonder  at  the  brilliant  change  from  this  meanness,  from  the 
reproach  of  captivity  to  the  more  noble  state  which  neither  the 
wise  men  of  the  Gentiles  could  have  comprehended,  nor  Israel 
itself  imagined,  had  not  God  foretold  it  of  its  future  happiness. 
The  nations  will  wonder  at  this  felicity,  on  seeing  him  elevated, 
exalted,  and  raised  very  high,  the  most  contemptible  littleness 
being  changed  into  the  most  extraordinary  grandeur,  which  must 
be  understood  of  the  people  who  persevered  in  the  divine  wor- 
shiji  and  observance  of  the  divine  law,  for  those  who  abandoned 
it  and  preferred  for  their  own  worldly  ends  to  mix  themselves 
with  the  nations,  not  having  truly  and  evidently  suffered  in  the 
midst  of  them  the  ojjprobrium  and  the  degradation  of  captivity, 
will  not  be  elevated  or  exulted,  being  treated  as  rebels  against 
the  law,  and  strangers  to  the  people  of  God. 

^''  The  prophet  continues  to  desci-ibe  the  wonder  of  the 
nations  when  they  see  the  wonderful  and  unexpected  redemp- 
tion of  Israel ;  he  describes  the  effects  of  this  wonder  such  an 
naturally  follow  a  great  change,  an  extraordinary  event ;  some 
talk  over  the  event  magnifying  it,  others  are  speechless,  amazed 
and  stupefied  at  the  portent ;  he  says  that  the  kings  will  close 
their  mouths,  because  it  chiefly  concerned  the  princes  and  kings 
of  the  world  to  oppose  the  happiness  of  Isiael,  they  being 
the  most  powerful  in  obstructing  it,  and  the  most  interested 
in  preventing  it,  as  Pharaoh  in  Egypt ;  then  they  count  Israel 
as   a    large    number   of   subjects,   and    those   who   were    slaves 


Hi,  liii]  ISAAC    OROBIO    t)E    CASTRO.  481 

before  become  rulers,  kings  having  to  bend  their  neck  to  the 
new  kingdom  which  the  Lord  will  raise  uji  on  the  earth,  a  king- 
dom which  will  have  no  end,  as  he  said  by  Daniel.  God  says 
they  will  then  close  their  mouths,  as  they  will  not  reply  or  be 
able  to  gainsay  the  divine  power,  as  he  said  before  at  the  redemp- 
tion from  Egypt,  'And  no  dog  sharpened  its  tongue'  (Exod.  xi.  7); 
the  kings  will  remain  confused,  ashamed  of  their  own  vanities, 
and  of  the  iniquity  of  the  laws  with  which  they  afflicted  Israel  for 
so  many  years ;  their  power  will  not  suffice  to  injure  him,  nor 
their  interest  to  hasten  his  ruin ;  nay,  they  and  their  princes 
will  prostrate  themselves  humbly  before  Israel,  as  he  promised 
in  xlix.  7,  and  so  in  Ix.  3  ;  and  at  the  tenth  verse  of  this  chap- 
ter, the  Lord,  speaking  of  Israel,  says  all  that  we  have  already 
explained  so  formally  as  to  admit  of  no  doubt  or  difference  of 
opinion.  The  prophet,  speaking  in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  says 
to  the  people,  Because  I  sti-uck  thee  in  my  wrath,  in  the  anger 
and  severity  of  my  divine  justice,  because  I  put  thee  in  a  state 
in  which  thou  hadst  no  longer  the  look  or  appearance  of  a  man 
or  a  son  of  man,  and  reduced  thee  to  the  lowest  degradation, 
and  thou  didst  suffer  with  patience  and  constancy  the  effects  of 
my  indignation  ;  for  that  reason  I  will  now  in  my  benevolence 
have  pity  on  thee,  I  will  use  my  mei'cifulness  with  thee ;  I 
will  bring  about  that  thou  shalt  be  elevated,  exalted,  and  raised 
high,  and  the  nations  shall  submit  themselves  to  thee  and  re- 
build thy  ruins,  and  their  kings  shall  serve  thee  humbly,  them- 
selves rising  up  in  thy  presence  from  their  royal  throues  on 
which  they  used  to  preside,  and  their  princes  falling  on  theii* 
knees  before  thee  ;  kings  will  see  and  will  stand  up,  they  will 
start  to  their  feet  on  seeing  thee  exalted  and  raised  so  high,  and 
the  lords  will  humble  themselves,  liecause  they  will  know  that 
the  Holy  One  of  Israel  has  chosen  thee.  And  at  verse  12 
he  says,  'That  the  nation  and  kingdom  that  will  not  serve  thee 
shall  perish,  and  the  nations  shall  be  utterly  destroyed,'  because 
at  the  sight  of  thj'  wonderful  redemption  no  one  will  be  able  to 
ignore  thy  glories,  and  thou  wilt  make  many  nations  speak  of 

1  i 


482  ISAAC  oitoDio  DE  CASTRO.  [Hi,  liii. 

them,  and  kings  will  close  their  mouths,  as  Micah  repeats  in 
chapter  vii.  of  liis  prophecy,  at  verse  i6.  For  lohat  ivas  not 
told  them  they  saw,  and  that  which  they  had  not  heard  tlvey 
understood.  The  prophet  gives  the  reason  of  the  kings  being 
dumb  struck  in  amazement,  and  of  the  nations  talking,  excited 
at  the  marvellous  change  in  Israel,  saying,  Because  tliey  saw 
what  they  had  not  been  told  of.  The  nations  were  not  ignorant 
that  Israel  persevered  in  its  hope,  but  they  regarded  that  hope 
as  vanity  and  superstition ;  not  one  of  their  wise  men  told  of 
it  as  a  credible  reality,  but  as  a  contemptible  fable  worthy  of 
ridicule ;  wherefore  it  was  the  same  as  not  to  have  told  it  and 
to  ignore  it :  ami  ivhat  they  had  not  heard  they  understood,  and 
they  came  to  a  practical  understanding  of  that  which  they  never 
wished  to  hear  and  could  not  understand ;  but  when  Israel  is 
exalted  and  lifted  up,  they  will  see  as  an  infallible  truth  that 
which  no  one  had  ever  told  them,  and  they  will  be  compelled  to 
understand  what  they  had  always  wished  to  ignore,  and  will 
bear  that  which  they  had  never  wished  to  hear  and  understand ; 
and  this  sight  of  what  they  had  never  thought  of,  this  under- 
standing of  what  they  had  never  heard  of,  this  practical  expe- 
rience of  what  they  had  never  understood  before,  will  be  the 
cause  why  many  nations  talk  of  Israel,  and  the  kings  humiliated 
and  prostrate  close  their  mouths,  since  what  was  not  told  them 
they  saw,  what  they  had  not  heard  they  understood. 

These  are  the  last  words  of  what  they  divided  into  the  fifty- 
second  chapter;  but  any  one  who  fairly  considers  them  wnll  see  in 
them  an  imperfect  sentence,  which  still  leaves  the  mind  of  the 
reader  in  suspense,  for  it  says,  thus  he  toill  cause  many  nations 
to  talk,  and  does  not  say  in  continuation  in  what  way  or  what 
the  nations  will  say ;  wherefore  either  the  sentence  must  be 
imperfect,  or  the  word  or  expression  thuii,  which  is  equivalent 
to  in  this  manner,  must  be  supeifluous,  a  supposition  we  cannot 
admit  in  the  case  of  the  sacred  text,  and  therefore  the  discourse 
must  necessarily  follow,  saying  in  what  way  and  what  he  will 
make  the  many  nations  say ;  and  what  they  have  to  say  could 


Hi,  liii.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTIJO.  483 

not  possibly  Ijc  snitl  except  by  coiitiTiuiny  it  in  wliat  tht-y  have 
ibviilecl  into  the  firty-thinl  chapter,  their  express  woi-ds  con- 
tinuing the  meaning  in  this  mannei- :  thus  he  will  cause  the 
kings  to  shut  their  mouths,  thus  he  will  cause  many  nations  to 
talk,  who  believed  our  report  1  and  on  whom  has  the  arm  of  the 
Lord  been  manifested  1  the  nations  continuing  throughout  the 
chapter  to  describe  with  the  highest  admiration  the  sufferings  of 
Israel  and  its  wonderful  change.  The  Christian  interpreters 
have  ti'ied  hard  to  obscure  the  connexion  of  these  last  words  of 
the  fifty-second  chapter  with  the  fifty-third,  because  they  do  not 
wish  the  nations  but  the  Jewish  people  to  be  speaking  in  this 
chapter,  otherwise  they  cannot  apply  the  chapter  to  their  Mes- 
siah. For  this  reason,  with  cunning  foresight,  they  translate 
the  Hebrew  word  for  /te  vjill  cause  to  talk  by  he  vnll  sprinkle, 
availing  themselves  of  the  proper  meaning  of  the  word,  which 
signifies  to  i^iyriukk ;  and  in  this  way  they  introduce  into  the 
fifty-third  chapter  Isrjiel  talking  of  the  Messiah,  in  order  to 
exclude  the  nations  talking  of  Israel  ;  but  this  cunning  in  no 
way  serves  their  purpose ;  on  the  contrary,  they  shew  they 
defend  a  bad  cause,  for  although  it  is  true  that  the  Hebrew 
\vord  signifies  to  sprinkle,  this  meaning  does  not  suit  the  verse, 
and  the  comparison  which  the  prophet  makes  is  out  of  place 
and  meaningless  if  we  translate  sprinkle  instead  oi  make  to  talk; 
the  comparison  is  in  this  form,  As  many  wondered  at  thee,  his 
visacje  ivas  so  marred  more  than  anij  man,  so  will  lie  sprinkle 
mani/  nations.  The  wondering  at  him  of  iruiny  peojile  has  no 
relation  with  his  sprinkling  many  nations ;  but  if  he  says  will 
cause  to  talk,  the  comparison  is  appropriate  and  quite  rhetorical, 
as  they  loondered  at  thee,  poor  and  abased,  so  thou  wilt  cause  the 
nations  to  talk  and  burst  forth  into  exclamations  of  wonder  on 
seeing  thy  change.  Besides,  the  expression  kings  will  close  their 
mouths  clearly  shews  that  the  contrary  is  said  of  the  nations 
who  will  talk,  wondering  at  the  unexpected  happiness  of  the 
people,  and  there  is  no  point  in  saying  he  will  sprinkle  many 
nations,  and  kings  will  close  their  mouths  :  but  it  is  a  highly 

I  i  2 


484  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO,  [liii.  I. 

rhetorical  figure,  wliicli  is  called  luitithesis,  to  place  together  two 
contrary  things,  as  the  jirophet  does  here  ;  he  will  cause  the 
kings  to  be  silent  and  the  nations  to  talk,  .  .  .  what  follows  in 
the  fifty-third  chapter  ;  and  if  it  were  not  so,  this  chapter  would 
in  no  way  fit  in  hy  introducing  Israel  saying  what  it  contains ; 
and  this  the  most  enthusiastic  Christian  can  notice,  as  the  fifty- 
second  chapter  ends  with  these  words.  He  will  cause  many 
nations  to  talk,  and  kinffs  will  close  their  mouths,  because  they 
saw  ivliat  had  not  been  told  them,  and  understood  what  they  had 
not  heard.  Who  believed  our  report,  and  upon  whom  was  the 
arm  of  Adonai  manifested  1  etc.  It  is  impossible  that  this  be- 
ginning of  the  fifty-third  can  have  any  connexion  with  that  end 
of  the  fifty-second,  unless  it  is  the  nations  who  talk  and  say, 
Who  believed  our  report  1  and  it  would  be  necessary,  in  order  to 
understand  Israel  to  be  speaking  the  contents  of  the  chapter,  that 
at  the  end  of  the  preceding  chapter  or  at  the  beginning  of  the  fifty- 
third  he  should  say  :  And  then  Israel  will  say  thus.  Who  believed 
our  report  ?  but  since  there  is  no  such  expression,  without  occa- 
sion and  against  the  connexion  the  Jewish  people  is  brought  in 
to  speak  what  is  said  in  the  fifty-third  chapter ;  consequently 
it  must  be  the  nations  who  talk,  and  not  Israel,  as  they  vainly 
pretend.  And  as  to  the  Hebrew  word  which  we  render  talk, 
it  is  true  that  it  signifies  to  sprinkle,  but  the  same  word,  to 
sprinkle  or  drip,  occurs  very  frequently  in  Holy  Scripture  in 
the  sense  of  to  talk  :  and  for  the  Christians  the  authority  of 
Pagninus  is  sufiicient,  who  says  on  this  very  verse  of  the  fifty- 
second  of  Isaiah,  he  will  sprinkle,  that  is,  he  will  make  to  talk ; 
and  since  Pagninus  understands  it  so  in  his  Hebrew  Dictionary, 
giving  as  an  example  this  very  verse,  no  further  proof  is  re- 
quired ;  and  it  is  certain  that  when  a  word  has  two  significations, 
it  must  be  understood  according  to  the  sense  of  the  subject- 
matter,  and  in  the  present  case  it  is  clearly  seen  that  of  sprink- 
ling does  not  apply. 

LIII.  '  Then  the  nations,  wondering  at  the  redemption  of  Israel, 
say.  Who  believed  our  rejMyrt  f  Who  ever  imagined,  or  held  it 


liii.  I.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  485 

certain,  that  what  we  now  see  was  to  hai)pen  1  He  said  Ijeforc  that 
tJiey  understood  ivhcit  tlieij  had  not  heard,  and  returns  to  tlie  same 
words,  saying.  Before  we  neither  heard  nor  understood,  but  now 
we  both  hear  and  understand  that  Israel  is  redeemed,  and  before 
none  believed  wliat  we  now  liear  of  the  glory  and  restoration  of 
Israel  to  the  grace  of  the  Lord  his  Clod,  and  the  possession  of 
the  holy  land ;  he  had  said  tliat  the  nations  and  kings  will 
wonder,  because  tliey  had  not  been  told,  nor  had  heard  or  under- 
stood it ;  and  the  same  he  says  in  chapter  xliii.  9,  '  Who 
among  them  can  declare  this,  and  shew  us  former  things'?'  as  if 
to  say,  None  of  the  nations  announced  or  related  it  as  true,  or 
foretold  it  so  that  we  might  believe  it  and  hear  it,  which  is  the 
same  as  what  he  said  above,  that  ivliich  ivas  not  told  them  they 
saiv,  and  what  theij  had  not  heard  they  understood.  But  the 
Lord  answers  them  in  the  eleventh  verse  of  the  same  chapter, 
that  he  announced  it  and  told  it.  and  will  cause  them  to  hear 
and  undei'stand  what  they  never  heard  or  believed ;  if  there  was 
no  one  among  the  nations  to  announce  it,  I  Adonai  have  an- 
nounced it  by  my  prophets,  I  myself  have  fulfilled  my  word  in 
saving  Israel  as  I  promised ;  I  have  saved  because  there  is  none 
else  who  can  save  ;  no  man,  no  creature,  is-  able  to  save  Israel, 
but  I  alone  :  and  by  redeeming  it  now  before  the  eyes  of  the 
nations,  I  will  cause  them  to  hear  what  had  not  been  told  them, 
and  I  will  cause  them  to  know  what  they  did  not  before  under- 
stand, and  they  will  then  in  wonder  say.  Who  believed  our  report  ? 
or  who  ever  gave  credit  to  what  we  do  now  hear  about  redeemed 
Israel ? 

And  upon  whom  ivas  tlte  arm  of  Adonai  manifested  1  This 
sentence  has  two  meanings,  both  literal ;  one  interrogatively 
negative,  thus :  to  whom  was  revealed  or  manifested  the  strength 
of  Adonai,  his  infinite  power,  the  effects  of  which  we  now  hear  of 
in  the  exaltation  of  Israel  %  both  portions  of  the  verse  making  a 
whole  in  their  meaning  :  who  ever  believed  what  we  now  hear, 
and  to  whom  did  Adonai  reveal  that  he  would  use  his  divine 
power  to  redeem  this  j>€ople,  for  that  was  never  considered  in 


48G  ISAAC  ouonio  de  castro.  [liii.  2. 

the  world  to  l)e  probablo  or  ]Josslble  1  But  with  still  greiiter 
propriety  it  can  be  understood  in  a  positive  sense,  making  it 
a  question  of  surprise  :  who  is  this  upon  ivhovi  ihe  arm  of  the 
Lord  was  manifested  and  the  greatest  pritofs  of  his  love  and 
onniipotence  ?  They  niiglit  well  excuse  this  question  of  tlie 
nations,  as  it  could  be  no  othej-  than  the  people  of  Israel  upon 
whom  the  Lord  many  times  said  he  had  manifested  and  would 
manifest  the  strong  arm  of  his  divine  power.  Thus  he  an- 
nounced it  by  the  same  Isaiah  in  the  preceding  chapter  (verse 
10),  'Adonai  haili  manifested  the  arm  of  his  holiness  in  the  eyes 
of  all  the  nations.'  Then  if  the  Lord  says  that  he  manifested 
his  holy  arm  upon  Israel,  and  that  all  the  nations  will  see  thisy 
they  had  no  reason  to  doubt  it.  and  there  is  no  occasion  for  the 
question,  and  wpon  whom  vjas  the  arm,  0/  Adonai  manifested  ? 
But  this  is  more  an  exclamation  of  surprise  than  a  question,  for 
when  such  an  extraordinary  thing  occui's  as  that  of  Ailonai  con- 
soling his  people  and  redeeming  Jerusalem  in  the  sight  of  the 
ends  of  the  earth  and  under  the  eyes  of  all  the  nations,  they 
justly  burst  foith  into  shouts  of  wonder,  saying,  Who  believed  our 
reijorl,  and  upon  vjhom  was  the  arm  0/  Adonai  manifested,  ex- 
cept upon  God's  afHicted  and  despised  people,  of  whom  we  never 
heard  or  believed  such  happiness  ?  The  prophet  said  the  same 
in  chapter  xl.  11,  describing  the  redemption  of  Israel  in  these 
words,  'Like  a  she])herd  he  will  feed  his  flock,  he  will  gather 
the  lambs  Avith  his  aim.' 

'^The  prophet  compares  Israel  in  his  mean  captive  state  to  a 
branch  whose  roots  are  in  a  barren  ground,  because  there  is  no 
water  to  give  it  life,  whence  necessarily  all  its  verdure  fades,  its 
leaves  fall,  and  it  remains  shorn  of  the  ornament  which  nature 
gave  it,  a  branch  whose  dry  roots  it  seems  impossible  can  be 
green  again  and  bear  fruit.  In  this  condition  the  Lord  said  by 
the  same  Isaiah  (i.  30)  that  he  would  place  Israel  for  its  trans- 
gressions, '  Ye  shall  be  as  an  oak  whose  leaves  are  falling  off,  and 
like  a  garden  that  hath  no  water;'  so  he  placed  him  in  its  cap- 
tivity, and  from  that  state  he  will  rescue  it  at  the  time  of  the 


liii.  2.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  487 

redemption  :  and  Israel  will  rise  like  a  slioOt  before  him,  and  like 
a  root  tnit  of  llic.  arid  earth.  The  prophet  says  as  a  root  out  of 
a  dry  ground,  hut  does  not  say  as  a  dry  root  out  of  the  ground, 
and  the  difference  is  well  worth  consideration ;  for  it  points  to 
nothing  less  than  the  hope  of  Israel,  for  a  dry  root  has  lost  the 
plant's  vitality,  and  there  is  no  hope  of  its  becoming  green 
again  ;  hut  that  which  is  in  a  diy  ground,  although  withered 
and  ajiparently  dead,  by  the  beneficial  help  of  water  returns  to 
its  former  state;  and  as  Israel,  although  in  its  cajjtivity  it  was 
deprived  of  its  ancient  splendour  through  want  of  that  special  and 
mii-aculous  providence  which,  like  living  waters,  made  it  live 
and  fructify,  was  nevertheless  to  revive  and  flourish  at  the  time 
of  its  redemption,  the  prophet  did  not  call  it  a  dry  root,  but  a 
root  in  a  dry  ground,  of  which  hope  never  failed  that  it  might 
be  green  again,  and  therefore  it  will  come  up  like  a  branch,  and 
like  a  root  out  of  a  di-y  ground,  when  the  Lord  pours  upon  it 
the  waters  of  his  mercy,  as  he  promised  by  Isaiah  (xliv.  3,  4). 
As  long  as  the  Lord  does  not  shew  this  mercy  to  Israel,  and 
keeps  it  in  its  captivity,  in  the  barren  desert  of  the  nations, 
it  remains  as  a  root  in  a  dry  ground ;  but  when  his  divine 
power  redeems  it  in  love,  when  it  receives  the  watering  of 
his  pity,  it  will  come  up  like  a  green  willow,  as  a  branch  out 
of  the  dry  ground,  in  which  for  so  many  centuries  it  struck 
its  roots ;  and  so  the  Lord  promised  by  the  same  prophet,  at 
xxvii.  6,  '  In  the  coming  days  Jacob  shall  take  root,  Israel  shall 
sprout  and  blossom ; '  and  then,  coming  up  like  a  branch  which 
springs  again  out  of  the  ground,  Israel  will  experience  what  the 
prophet  says  in  Ixvi.  14,  'Your  bones  shall  flourish  like  a  shoot.' 

He  hath  no  form  nor  comeliness.  As  the  branches  and  root  iu 
a  dry  ground  have  no  form  or  resemblance  of  what  they  ought  to 
be  or  what  they  were,  and  there  is  no  sorl  of  beauty  iu  them,  so 
the  house  of  Israel  in  captivity  shews  nothing  of  what  it  was, 
and  does  not  exhibit  a  shadow  of  what  it  is  to  be ;  it  etands 
like  a  root  in  a  dry  ground,  without  splendour  and  without 
form  or  figure  to  be  admired  ;  it  stands  divested  of  the  beauty 


488  ISAAC   OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [liii.  2. 

imparted  to  it  by  those  wondrous  I'aj's  of  light  which  the  Lord 
shed  on  it  on  Sinai.  Witli  tliis  disfigurement,  with  this  decay 
of  beauty,  tlie  Lord  had  threatened  it  through  Isaiah  (v.  14); 
hence  the  nations  say  of  Israel  in  its  captivity  and  meanness, 
lie  hath  no  form  nor  comeliness.  This  loss  of  its  foi-mer  beauty, 
through  which  all  the  nations  refused  to  recognise  it,  was  pre- 
dicted by  Isaiah  (xxviii.  1),  'Woe  to  the  crown  of  pride  of 
Ephraim  !  its  desirable  beauty  shall  fall  like  a  sprig :  its  de- 
sirable beauty  shall  be  a  fading  flower.'  Thus  Jeremiah  in  his 
Lamentations  bemoaned  it  (ii.  i),  'How  hath  the  Lord  cast 
down  from  heaven  to  earth  the  beauty  of  Israel!'  Therefore 
the  nations  will  say,  seeing  Israel  in  this  state,  lie  hath  no  form 
7ior  comelinesif.  And  we  saw  him,  and  there  zvas  no  appearance 
in  him  that  tue  should  desire  him,  for  Israel  being  so  disfigured 
as  to  retain  not  even  the  figure  of  man,  his  deformed  and 
uncomely  appearance  resembling  a  root  in  a  dry  gi'ound,  the 
nations  had  nothing  to  covet  in  him,  none  of  the  nations  wished 
to  be  or  even  to  look  like  an  Israelite ;  the  race  of  the  Jewish 
people  being  offensive  to  all,  all  held  it  as  the  scura  of  mankind. 
And  even  converted  to  their  sects,  the  Jew  lacks  the  esteem 
that  native  converts  gain,  or  which  the  Turks  and  the  Moors 
have  for  the  Christians  ;  any  barbarian  who  may  choose  to  follow 
their  Koran  is  esteemed  and  raised  to  the  highest  honours,  but 
the  Jew  who  embraces  their  sect  remains  always  oppressed  and 
despised,  for  they  desire  nothing  from  this  people,  they  see  no- 
thing in  it  worthy  to  be  desired, /or  it  has  no  form  nor  comeliness, 
nay,  it  seems  to  them  wholly  detestable,  contemptible,  and  odious, 
an  example  of  meanness,  old  ruins  of  a  desolated  edifice,  a 
deceitful  superstition.  So  the  Lord  said  it  would  be  with  him 
in  his  captivity,  that  such  would  be  the  consideration  in  which 
lie  would  be  held  b^-^the  nations  among  whom  he  would  be 
scattered  (Deut.  xxviii.  37).  How  then  in  such  a  state  would 
the  nations  wish  for  him  ?  who  ever  coveted  desolation  or  a 
desolated  thing  1  who  ever  took  notice  of  a  pattern  of  misery  1 
and  who  ever  coveted  what  he  held  as  falsehood  and  a  laughing- 


liii.  3.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  489 

stock  1  Therefore  the  nations,  as  if  to  exculpate  themselves  of 
their  error  in  the  recognition  of  Israel,  will  say  that  God  had 
])lace(l  liim  in  such  a  state  that  when  they  saw  him  his  ajipear- 
anec  was  not  worthy  of  being  desired :  We  saw  him,  cmd  there 
ivas  no  appearance  in  him  that  we  should  desire  Mm. 

''  The  nations  say  that  Israel  was  despised,  and  this  the 
nations  of  the  universe  will  not  now  deny,  and  there  is  no  need 
of  greater  proof  than  their  own  confession  of  it ;  since  they  say 
that  nothing  is  so  contemptible  as  a  Jew,  thus  fulfilling  not 
only  what  the  Lord  predicted  in  Deuteronomy,  but  also  what 
the  same  Isaiah  prophesies  in  xlix.  7,  and  so  David  before  in 
Ps.  xliv.  14,  15.  Thus  the  Lord  wished  that  Israel  should  be, 
and  thus  the  nations  performed,  as  Isaiah  pi-edicted  (xlv.  1 7  aii<-l 
20).  Therefore  the  verse  continues,  rejected  of  men  :  a  regular 
consequence  in  human  society ;  when  a  man  is  unfortunate  all 
forsake  him  ;  as  Israel  fell  into  contempt  in  the  eyes  of  the 
nations,  so  all  abandoned  him,  considering  him  unworthy  of  all 
dealings  and  communication,  because  they  saw  his  appearance 
marred  more  than  any  man,  and  his  form  more  than  the  S07is  of 
man  ;  they  saw  him  despised,  and  held  communication  with  him 
to  be  dishonouring,  admitting  hinj  only  when  their  own  inter- 
ests advised  it;  but  in  the  absence  of  that  motive  there  are 
no  men  who  will  not  avoid  Israel,  and  prohibit  or  forbid  his 
friendship ;  for  oppression  and  persecution  he  will  be  sought 
after  by  the  men  of  the  nations,  but  for  good  or  true  friendship 
he  will  be  forbidden,  or  rejected  by  men,  who  will  look  upon 
him  with  loathing  and  disgust  as  a  foul  and  despicable  object, 
as  Jeremiah  lamented  (iii.  4,  5)  ;  Isaiah  saying  the  same  thing 
here,  shunned  by  the  great.  A  man  of  sufferings  and  accus- 
tomed to  sicknesses.  He  calls  the  people  of  Israel  *  a  man  of 
sufferings,'  continuing  to  use  the  metaphor  of  an  afflicted  indi- 
vidual for  the  whole  collective  people,  a  style  frequently  em- 
ployed in  Holy  Scripture  (Judges  xx.  17,  22,  xxi.  i,  i  Sam. 
xvii.  2).  In  this  same  signification  and  style  Isaiah  calls  Israel 
in  our  verse  a  man  of  svfferings,  speaking  of  the  whole  people 


490  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTUO.  [liil.  J. 

in  the  singular  as  of  a  single  individual.  Jeremiah  followed 
the  same  style  (Lam.  iii.  i),  calling  Israel  'a  man  in  his  afflic- 
tions.' He  means  by  snfferinys  those  which  in  his  wanderings 
the  nations  caused  him  to  suffer,  both  in  body  and  in  mind  with 
unutterable  pains  and  afflictions,  fulfilling  what  the  Lord  foi'e- 
told  in  Deuteronomy  (xxviii.  60,  65) ;  Isaiah  depicting  it  in  the 
same  way  iu  i.  5.  And  accustomed  to  sicknesses,  used  and  habitu- 
ated to  these  sufferings  and  sicltnesses  of  reproach,  miserable 
slavery,  and  depression  ;  and  it  is  said  accustomed,  used  to,  because 
these  evils  were  not  to  be  short  or  for  a  limited  time,  as  the  captivi- 
ties under  the  Judges  and  the  Babylonian,  for  they  were  to  be 
evils  and  sicknesses  lasting  through  long  centuries,  so  as  to  be  to 
all  appearance  incurable.  Thus  the  Lord  predicted  in  Deutero- 
nomy (xxviii.  59),  '  Great  plagues,  and  of  long  continuance,  and 
sore  sicknesses,  and  of  long  continuance,'  as  Israel  has  had  to 
suffer  more  than  two  thousand  years  amongst  the  nations,  and 
therefore  it  is  now  accustomed  to  troubles  ;  accordingly  they  will 
very  appropriately  say  that  it  was  a  people  accustomed  to  sick- 
ness. The  prophet  Micah  (vi.  13)  uses  this  phrase  in  speaking 
of  the  people,  'And  also  I  made  thee  sick  in  smiting  thee,  and 
in  making  thee  desolate  because  of  thy  sins.'  And  he  was  as 
one  who  hid  his  face.  That  is,  Israel  in  its  captivity  does  not 
dare  to  shine  or  ever  shew  himself,  but  fearful  that  the  more  he 
is  seen  the  more  he  is  noticed,  and  the  less  the  people  attend  to 
him  the  more  his  life  and  peace  are  ensured,  he  conceals  and 
hides  his  face,  for  he  would  rather  they  should  not  remember 
him,  because  the  nations  never  mention  him  for  his  good,  but 
for  his  oppression,  to  invent  new  ways  to  increase  his  troubles 
and  drive  him  to  new  wanderings  throughout  the  world  without 
being  able  to  find  rest  amongst  any  of  the  nations.  Therefore 
the  prophet  said.  As  one  who  hides  his  face,  like  a  man  who 
in  his  timidity  does  not  dare  to  be  seen,  but  covers  his  face  so  as 
not  to  be  recognised,  and  in  his  confusion  withdraws  from  one 
place  to  another  to  escape  the  harshness  of  the  powerful  one 
who  endeavours  to  injure  him.     The  Lord  said  in  Deuteronomy 


liii.  .S.]  ISAAC    OllOBIO    DE    CASTUO.  491 

(xxviii.  65)  tluit  so  it  would  be  witli  Isiael  lunongst  the  nationy, 
that  iu  his  faintheartedness  he  wouUl  liide  hiniself,  wandering 
from  one  country  into  another.  Therefore  Israel  hides  Iiis  face, 
ilares  not  appear  befoi'e  the  nations,  because  his  heart  is  always 
in  fear,  either  because  they  do  persecute  him,  or  because  he  fears 
they  will,  even  thougli  they  forget  him,  as  it  is  foretold  in  Levi- 
ticus (xxvi.  17),  'And  ye  shall  Hee  when  none  pursueth  you.' 
This  is  what  the  proj)liet  says  in  this  verse,  and  as  one  hidimj 
his  face,  always  treeing,  always  fearful ;  he  predicted  the  same  at 
iii.  8,  9,  '  Because  their  tongue  and  their  doings  were  against 
Adonai,  the  shew  of  their  countenance  witnessed  against  them;' 
that  is,  the  sins  of  Israel  frightened  him  so  that  he  dares  not 
shew  his  face,  which  is  what  Ezekiel  predicted  at  vi.  9,  '  And  they 
shall  be  cut  iu  their  faces  for  the  wickednesses  they  committed  ; ' 
and  at  vii.  18,  'And  shame  shall  be  upon  all  their  faces;'  all 
which  Isaiah  said  here  in  one  word,  and  as  one  who  covers  his 
face.  He  says  moreover,  He  luas  despised  and  toe  esteemed  him 
not ;  it  would  seem  to  be  one  and  the  same  thing,  because 
'  des])ised '  and  '  not  esteemed '  ai'e  synonymous,  and  there  is 
no  difference  between  despising  and  not  esteeming ;  but  tliis 
is  not  so  :  the  prophet  exi)resses  very  different  things  by  those 
two  terms.  He  means  to  say  that  no  nation  felt  esteem  for 
Israel,  because  he  was  seen  to  be  always  despised  by  all,  the 
contemiDt  which  he  suffered  from  all  being  the  reason  for  his 
not  being  esteemed  by  any,  which  is  not  the  lot  of  slaves  or  any 
kind  of  captives,  for  these,  though  in  another  nation  they  suffer 
subjection  and  slavery,  in  their  own  hold  power,  government,  and 
lordship,  and  there  they  are  not  despised ;  and  as  such  they  are 
considered  even  when  in  subjection  and  captivity,  because  they 
belong  to  a  free  nation  and  can  become  free  again,  as  the  Turks, 
the  Moors,  and  other  nations ;  but  Israel  is  despised  throughout 
the  world, because  it  has  no  dominion,  jjower,  or  government  in  any 
part  of  it,  and  thus  he  seems  to  every  nation  unworthy  of  the  least 
esteem,  eveiy  nation  esteen^ing  him  of  no  account,  because  they 
see  him  despised  by  all ;  thus  the  nations  will  say.  He  was  despised 


492  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [Uii.  4. 

aiid  ive  did  not  esteem  him,;  for  since  all  the  nations  despised 
liini,  there  was  no  reason  why  any  one  should  esteem  him, 

*  The  nations  confess  a  truth  evident  and  well  known  to 
all :  they  say  the  people  of  Israel  bore  their  sicknesses,  and 
suffered  their  sufferings ;  the  sicknesses,  troubles,  and  sufferings 
which  they  caused  him  in  his  captivity  by  their  continued  per- 
secutions which  tliey  suffered  and  endured  with  the  utmost 
patience  and  such  wonderful  forbearance  for  so  many  centuries ; 
the  nations  call  them  their  sufferings,  their  sicknesses,  as  the 
effects  of  their  harshness  and  hatred,  in  the  same  way  as  we 
say  in  common  conversation,  '  he  suffered  patiently  his  master's 
blows,'  'the  pious  man  bears  God's  trials,  pains,  and  punish- 
ments with  patience.'  One  clearly  sees  that  the  punishment  is 
called  God's,  he  being  the  acting  cause,  for  it  can  be  God's  in 
no  other  sense,  and  the  blows  cannot  be  the  master's  except 
in  the  sense  that  they  are  the  effect  of  which  he  is  the  cause. 
Grammarians  teach  this  rule  in  all  languages ;  and  in  Latin 
they  give  as  an  example  Achilles'  wound,  which  may  mean 
either  that  which  Achilles  inflicted  or  that  which  he  received 
from  another;  so  in  this  verse  the  nations  say,  he  suffered  our 
pains,  Israel  bore  with  patience  and  endured  the  sufferings  and 
sicknesses  which  we  harshly  inflicted  on  him,  and  which  the 
Lord  had  already  many  times  announced  to  him  in  the  sacred 
law  as  Deut.  xxviii.  60,  '  And  he  will  bring  upon  thee  all  the 
sufferings  of  Egypt.'  The  Lord  says  the  sufferings  of  Egypt, 
not  those  which  Egypt  suffered,  for  Israel  never  suffered  those 
in  his  captivities,  but  those  which  Egypt  brought  upon  the 
people  in  their  captivity,  styling  them  '  of  Egj'pt,'  as  effects  of 
that  cause.  Thus  the  nations  say  our  stfferinys,  those  which  the 
other  nations  caused  them  in  their  present  captivity,  just  as 
above  those  which  Egypt  caused  the  Hebrews,  and  they  are 
theirs  because  they  are  their  own  actions  springing  fi-om  their 
own  power  and  wickedness.  These  sicknesses  and  sufferings 
which  the  nations  would  cause  scattei-ed  and  captive  Israel  are 
spoken    of  in    the   last  clause  of   the  verse  just   quoted  from 


liii.  4.]  ISAAC   OHOBIO   DE    CASTRO,  493 

Deuteronomy  :  the  divine  justice  threatening  that  Israel  would 
suffer  not  only  the  sufferings  and  troubles  that  Egypt  inflicted 
on  him,  but  others  very  different  and  of  an  extraordinary  nature, 
that  were  not  mentioned  in  the  book  of  the  law,  when  he  should 
be  cast  out  to  suffer  amongst  the  nations  ;  and  these  are  the 
sicknesses  and  sufferings  which  the  nations  will  say  that  Israel 
suffei'ed  and  endured  with  such  wonderful  constjincy.  This 
manner  of  speaking  is  an  ordinary  style  in  the  sacred  text, 
e.g.  Ezek.  xxxvi.  15,  'Neither  will  I  cause  thee  to  hear  the 
shame  of  the  nations,  neither  shalt  thou  bear  the  reproach  of 
the  people.'  But  it  is  clear  that  the  nations  did  not  bear  the 
shame  and  the  reproach,  but  that  they  caused  them  to  Israel, 
and  therefore  he  calls  them  '  of  the  nations.'  Thus  sjjake  Zeph. 
ii.  8,  '  I  heard  the  reproach  of  Moab,  and  the  revilings  of  the 
children  of  Ammon,  who  reproached  my  people ; '  and  in  the 
same  sense  the  nations  will  say,  '  he  bare  our  sufferings,'  as  if 
they  would  say,  he  suffered  our  reproach,  our  shame ;  for  the 
style  and  phraseology  is  all  the  same,  which  is  seen  also  in  many 
Psalms  of  David,  for  example,  xl.  16,  'The  nations  shall  be 
desolate  in  reward  for  their  ill-usage ; '  it  is  clearly  seen  that 
it  does  not  mean  for  the  ill-usage  or  reproach  which  they  suf- 
fered, but  that  which  they  caused  Israel,  nevertheless  he  calls 
it  theirs  because  they  are  the  cause  of  it,  as  of  the  sufferings  and 
sicknesses  of  Israel  which  the  nations  called  theirs  in  the  same 
sense,  as  being  the  effect  of  their  wickedness.  Although  this 
verse  is  thus  clearly  explained  without  varying  a  letter's  point, 
yet,  since  our  opponents  make  much  out  of  it,  it  seems 
proper  to  explain  it  somewhat  further,  so  as  to  leave  no  doubt 
or  scruple  about  its  meaning ;  and  this  inteiprotation  will  be 
accommodated  to  the  doctors  of  Christianity  themselves  as  far 
as  possible,  not  to  Nicolas  de  Lira  in  his  epistles,  and  to  the 
Bishop  of  Burgos  in  his  additions,  and  many  others  who  under- 
stand the  verse  not  of  the  sins  of  men,  as  others  understand, 
which  the  Messiah  was  to  take  upon  himself,  but  of  the  bodily 
pains  and  sufferings,  of  hunger,  thirst,  and  other  human  passions, 


41)4  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [liil.  4- 

wliicli  they  affirm  he  liad  to  siifl'er  like  other  people,  and 
explain  '  he  snftV'red  our  sutlerings,  our  sieknesses,'  that  is,  he 
had  sufferings  or  sicknesses,  hunger  and  thirst  like  ourselves,  and 
in  this  respect  he  wished  to  be  the  equal  of  other  men,  though 
he  was  able,  if  he  wislied,  to  escape  them.  But  these  doctors 
do  not  properly  explain  that  word  our,  and  it  is  not  agreeable 
to  reason  and  good  logic  to  say  that,  because  a  person  suffers 
troubles  similar  to  those  endured  by  another,  one  bears  the 
sufferings  of  another,  as  each  one  suffers  what  he  feels  in  him- 
self, or  what  he  is  caused  to  suffer,  although  the  pains  and 
passions  may  be  alike  and  of  the  same  kind  ;  wherefore  this 
explanation  is  neither  plausible  nor  consistent.  Other  doctors 
explain  this  verse  by  saying  that  the  Messiah  suffered  the  sick- 
nesses and  the  sufferings  of  Israel,  and  this  people  on  repentance 
will  say  he  endured  our  sicknesses  and  sufferings  ;  this  opinion 
is  worthy  of  examination,  because  the  Messiah  had  to  suffer 
either  the  pains  which  the  Jewish  people  deserved  for  their  ^ins^ 
or  those  which  the  same  people  made  him  suffei",  for  he  could  not 
bear  or  suffer  the  same  pains  and  sicknesses  which  the  ]ie()])le 
had  in  themselves,  because  it  is  impossible  for  one  individual 
to  suffer  pain  and  another  to  suffer  and  bear  the  very  same  j  it 
would  be  necessary  then,  if  he  had  to  suffer  the  pains  of  the 
people,  that  they  should  be  either  those  which  the  people  de- 
served for  their  crimes,  he  taking  them  upon  himself  to  suffer 
them,  or  those  which  the  people  inflicted  on  his  own  body,  and 
in  either  case  it  would  be  verified  that  he  bare  the  pains  of  the 
people.  And  in  truth  no  other  manner  of  understanding  it  is 
l(ift,  and  this  interpretation  is  refuted  by  their  own  form  of 
arginuent,  we  applying  it  to  Israel  in  relation  to  the  nations 
who  afflicted  him,  as  they  do  to  the  Messiah  in  relation  to  the 
people  who  was  injured ;  and  as  they  explain  it  that  the  Mes- 
siah suffered  the  pains  which  the  peoj)le  deserved  oi"  those  which 
they  caused  and  inflicted  on  his  i^erson,  and  therefore  the  Jews 
will  say  our  sufferings,  so  we  by  the  same  form  of  argument 
explain   it  to  our  purpose,  saying  that    the   people   of   Israel 


liii.  4.]  ISAAC  oRonio  de  castro,  495 

Buffered  and  endured  the  sufferings  whiok  tlie  nations  deserved 
for  their  sins,  or  those  which  they  caused  them  by  their  liarsh 
treatment;  and  they  called  them  our  because  they  were  the 
cause  of  them,  which  is  the  same  meaning  as  that  of  the 
Christian  theologians,  changing  only  the  subjects,  they  say  that 
the  people  would  say  our  suj)erings  of  those  which  the  Messiah 
would  suffer,  and  we  say  that  the  nations  will  say  our  sufferivys 
for  those  which  the  people  suffers  in  captivity ;  consequently, 
tliey  can  in  no  way  oppose  our  interpretation  without  first  re- 
futing their  own,  for  this  is  an  argumentum  ad  hominem,  which 
is  refuting  the  opponent  by  his  own  reasoning.  We  observe 
that  Nicolas  de  Lira  and  other  interpreters  utter  loud  excla- 
mations, thinking  we  say  that  Israel  bears  the  sins  and  suffer- 
ings of  the  nations,  wishing  to  suffer  for  them,  enduring  the 
penalty  which  they  deserved,  and  accepting  it  as  an  atonement 
for  their  own  guilt,  wherefore  they  make  fine  ridicule  of  our 
doctrine  ;  but  they  are  mistaken,  because  Israel  never  imagined 
nor. believes  such  a  thing,  or  that  one  can  atone  for  the  sin  of 
another.  We  only  say  that  the  nations,  acknowledging  the  errors 
in  which  they  lived,  and  the  truth  which  Israel  always  pro- 
fesffcd  in  its  wanderings,  will  say  with  humility  and  submission, 
that  they  deserved  for  their  errors  the  troubles  and  punish- 
ments which  Israel  endured  and  was  made  to  suffer,  though 
innocent  of  all  the  falsehoods  which  they  charged  them  with  in 
their  divine  worship ;  and  accused  by  their  own  conscience  they 
will  own  :  surely  he  bare  our  sufferings  and  endured  our  sick- 
nesse>!,  both  those  which  we  deserved,  and  those  wc  caused  him 
by  the  continued  severity  of  our  persecutions ;  and  we  esteemed 
him  stricken,  smitten  of  GocL,  and  afficted.  The  nations  say 
that  Israel  seemed  to  them  to  be  punished  by  God,  because  they 
saw  him  sick,  burdened  with  sufferings  and  troubles ;  and  in 
truth  the  nations  wei*e  not  mistaken,  for  so  it  is,  and  Israel  con- 
fesses throughout  the  world  that  the  Lord  made  him  a  captive, 
and  scattered  him  among  the  nations  to  opprobrium,  contempt, 
and  afflictions,  causing  him  to  appear  on  the  stage  of  the  world 


496  ISAAC   OROBIO   DE   CASTUO,  [liii.  4. 

in  the  part  of  a  man  of  svffiirings.  But  the  pro])het  says  that 
tlie  nations  will  inulerstaiul  the  contrary,  and  will  retract  their 
former  opinion  that  '  he  suffered  our  sufferings '  had  no  wider 
signification ;  '  but  we  esteemed  him  as  wounded  and  smitten 
by  God;'  that  is  to  say,  we  were  mistaken,  believing  that  he 
was  punished  by  God,  Avhen  he  bare  our  sufferings,  our  afflic- 
tions and  wounds,  wliich  is  contraiy  to  the  truth ;  since  Israel 
was  wounded,  smitten,  and  punished  by  Gorl,  as  the  nations 
believed,  which  opinion  they  had  no  occasion  to  reti'act;  but 
if  we  weigh  the  meaning  of  the  words,  they  signify  something 
else  quite  clear  and  pi-oved  throughout  the  world,  which  neither 
the  nations  will  deny,  nor  we  ourselves  ignore  it  that  the  Lord 
punished  Israel  for  his  rebellion,  wounded  and  cast  him  out 
througliout  the  nations,  afflicted  him  for  his  guilt,  as  a  father 
punishes  his  son,  that  being  coi-rected  of  his  vices  he  may  follow 
the  path  of  virtue,  and  attain  the  i)erfcction  that  the  most  loving 
Father  desires  him  to  possess.  But  ihe  nations  did  not  con- 
sider Israel  to  be  punished  as  the  first-born  Son  of  God  for  his 
future  happiness,  but  wounded  with  a  mortal  incurable  blow, 
abandoned  of  God,  stricken  with  the  lci)rosy  of  infidelity  towards 
his  Creator,  and  forsaken  for  ever  as  lost  and  rejirobated ;  so  all 
their  authors  write ;  so  they  preach  in  their  churches ;  this  is 
what  they  throw  in  the  face  of  the  children  of  Israel,  from 
the  most  accom2:)lished  to  the  most  vulgar  of  them,  from  the 
wisest  to  the  most  ignorant,  mocking  at  our  liojie  of  recovery, 
and  holding  our  wounds  to  be  mortal.  The  Lord  gives  the  lie  to 
the  nations,  and  prepares  for  them  disappointment  and  punish- 
ment by  the  prophet  Jeremiah  (xxx.  11-14),  concluding  by 
contradicting  the  wickedness  of  the  nations  and  their  false  judg- 
ment :  '  For  I  will  restore  health  unto  thee,  and  I  will  heal 
thee  of  thy  wounds,  saith  Adonai,  because  they  called  thee 
outcast,  Sion'  (verse  17).  Thus  the  Lord  promises  to  heal 
Israel  of  the  wounds  with  which  he  wounded  him  by  the  nations  ; 
lie  will  not  leave  him  perpetually  wounded  and  cast  off"  as  im- 
pure and  leprous  for  having  nmrdered  his  Messiah  ;  but,  on  the 


liii.  5.]  ISAAC   OROBIO   I)E   CASTIIO.  497 

contrary,  he  will  heal  and  cure  him,  and  Israel  will  at  the  paine 
time  serve  Adonai  his  Uod,  and  his  King  Messiah,  as  he  pro- 
mises in  verse  8.  The  nations  will  not  understand  this,  because 
even  God  does  not  wish  them  to  understand  it ;  and  they  believe 
that  Israel  is  wounded  and  smitten  by  God,  because  he  will 
not  forsake  the  divine  law  and  admit  their  creeds.  All  agree 
that  he  is  rejected  by  God,  that  it  is  a  virtue  to  persecute  him 
and  torment  him,  by  making  him  bear  their  unjust  inflictions, 
by  pronmlgating  laws  to  ruin  him,  and  efface  his  name  from 
the  earth.  And  thus  of  the  very  sufferings  which  they  inflict 
on  him  they  say  continually  that  it  is  a  punishment  from  God ; 
that  it  is  the  effect  of  his  reprobation,  because  they  understand 
and  teach  that  God  wishes  them  to  act  thus,  but  when,  at  the 
wondrous  redemption,  they  see  him  exalted  and  lifted  up, 
they  will  give  up  the  false  conception  they  had  formed  of 
Israel  during  his  troubles,  and  they  will  confess  their  error, 
saying,  Aiid  ive  esteemed  him  to  be  wounded,  smitten  of  God, 
and  afflicted,  thinking  that  this  wounding  was  his  reprobation 
for  his  eternal  ruin,  not  a  loving  means  to  bring  about  his 
highest  glory;  and  they  will  acknowledge  that  the  Lord  wounded 
his  people  to  heal  them  afterwards,  as  he  said  by  Isaiah  (Ivii. 
17,  v.  25).  This  wounding  had  been  determined  by  the  Lord 
in  the  wilderness  (Lev.  xxvi.  17). 

*  This  verse  does  not  differ  in  substance  from  the  preceding 
one ;  on  the  contrary,  it  follows  the  same  reasoning  and  style, 
the  nations  confessing  their  wickedness  and  rebellion  against 
God  our  Lord  in  impiously  using  their  power  against  an  inno- 
cent people,  which  never  offended  them,  or  gave  occasion  for 
their  tpaunical  laws  in  order  to  afflict  and  oppress  them  with 
every  kind  of  calamity  ]  thei'efore  they  confess  that  Israel  was 
afflicted  by  their  harshness,  wickedness,  and  revolt  against  the 
humility  of  the  afflicted  people,  and  against  God,  whom  they 
offended  by  persecuting  and  murdering  the  innocent,  and  seek- 
ing after  cunning  false  witnesses  to  affirm  horrible  things  of 
them,  to  accuse  and  incriminate  them.      Therefore  they  will 

Kk 


498  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [liii.  5- 

say,  Israel  is  afflicted  through  our  revolt,  crushed  through  our 
ini(|uities;  our  hatred  and  malice  wei'e  the  cause  of  Israel's 
miseries,  of  his  going  ill-used  and  crushed  throughout  the  world. 
Tims  the  Lord  i*eproves  the  nations  through  the  same  Isaiah 
(iii.  15),  'What  mean  ye  that  ye  beat  my  people  to  pieces,  and 
grind  the  faces  of  the  poor?'  Then  in  penitence  the  nations 
will  say,  He  was  afflicted  through  our  revolt,  crushed  hy  our 
iniqxuties,  and  the  malicious  hatred  which  we  bore  to  him,  with- 
out respecting  the  faces  of  the  poor  or  the  aged,  for  although 
Israel  is  submissive  and  humble,  his  humility  does  not  help  him 
to  escape  being  persecuted  and  bruised  by  the  nations.  And 
even  more  clearly  David  said  so  in  Psalm  xciv.  5,  '  They  break 
in  pieces  thy  people,  Adonai,  and  afflict  thine  heritage  ;'  and 
that  through  the  malice  of  nations,  as  he  said  in  the  preceding* 
verse ;  and  then  he  continues,  '  They  break  in  pieces,'  etc., 
which  is  the  same  as  what  Isaiah  says,  afflicted  hy  our  revolt, 
crushed  hy  our  iniquities.  And  for  the  better  understanding 
of  this  verse  we  must  remark  that  the  rebellion  and  guilt  which 
afflicted  and  crushed  Israel  must  not  be  understood  as  a  final 
cause,  as  if  it  were  said.  He  who  orders  the  rebellion  and  guilt 
of  the  nations  was  afflicted,  in  order  to  remove  or  expiate  them 
by  his  wounds,  or  by  his  afflictions  and  troubles,  but  as  an 
efficient  cause,  that  the  guilt  and  rebellion  of  the  nations  afflicted, 
wounded,  and  crushed  Israel,  and  in  this  sense  it  is  said,  crushed 
hy  our  revolt,  which  is  the  same  as  to  say,  by  our  iniquities 
and  wickedness  we  crushed  him;  an  ordinary  way  of  speaking 
in  all  languages,  as  if  any  one  should  complain  and  say,  By  the 
wickedness  and  iniquity  of  the  witnesses  I  find  myself  impri- 
soned, wounded,  and  afflicted ;  no  one  will  understand  it  to  be 
to  atone  for  the  iniquity  of  the  witnesses,  but  that  they  are  the 
efficient  cause  of  his  troubles ;  so  the  nations  say  that  because 
of  their  wickedness  and  guilt  Israel  was  crushed,  tormented, 
and  persecuted.  This  form  of  expression  is  very  common  in  Holy 
Writ :  Numbers  xvi.  26  will  suffice  as  an  example,  in  which 
passage  it  is  very  clear  that  they  had  not  to  die  for  tlie  sins  of 


liii.  5.]  ISAAC    OUOBIO    DE    CASTRO,  499 

those  criminals,  as  a  final  cause  to  atone  for  them,  but  as  the 
cause  or  occasion  of  their  death.  Isaiah  says  tlie  same  in  the 
name  of  the  nations  :  through  our  sins  and  malice  the  people 
of  Israel  suffered  their  calamities ;  and  thus  Arias  Montauus 
understood  it  in  his  interlinear  Latin  translation,  where  he 
expresses  the  revolts  and  iniquities  as  the  agent  after  the 
passive  voice,  just  as  when  we  say  the  world  was  created 
by  God,  God  is  the  acting  cause ;  so  he  says,  using  the  same 
grammatical  form,  was  crushed  hy  our  iniquities,  wherefore  the 
iniquities  are  the  efficient  cause ;  and  the  Latin  he  uses  can 
admit  of  no  other  sense  than  that  the  nations  will  acknowledge 
that  their  rebellion  and  iniquities  were  the  occasion  and  the 
cause  why  Israel  should  suffer  such  oppressions,  miseries,  and 
troubles.  The  2>unishme)it  of  our  peace  was  upon  him.  Ai'ias 
Montanus  translates  it,  '  The  punishment  of  our  pacifications 
was  upon  him,'  Itecause  the  Hebrew  word  is  in  the  plural  num- 
ber ;  and  he  interprets  it  very  well  in  this  way,  particularly 
because  this  word  not  only  means  peace  as  opposed  to  war,  but 
every  kind  of  good,  quiet,  security,  mental  enjoyment,  and  gene- 
ral prosperity.  David,  in  speaking  of  the  end  of  the  righteous 
man,  says  in  Psalm  xxxvii.  37,  'Mark  the  perfect  man,  and  behold 
the  upright,  for  the  end  of  each  is  peace  ; '  so  Isaiah  calls  repose 
and  quiet  i^eace,  promising  it  to  his  people  in  xxxii,  17.  Among 
other  things  which  the  nations  will  confess,  seeing  how  un- 
justly they  persecuted  Israel,  they  will  say,  Tlie  punishment  of 
our  peace  ivas  upon  him  ;  our  peace,  our  prosj)erity,  was  always 
a  punishment  for  Israel,  the  effects,  the  fruits  of  our  greatness 
and  sovereignty,  and  the  prosperity  of  our  monarchies  were  for 
that  people  only  punishments  and  persecutions,  and  as  Montanus 
reads,  '  our  pacifications '  or  the  happinesses  which  we  enjoyed 
brought  upon  Israel  punishments,  afflictions,  and  the  greatest 
misfortunes  ;  indeed  this  clause  admits  of  no  other  interpretation, 
because  it  says  the  punishment  of  our  peace ;  and  there  is  no 
pvmishment  for  peace,  because  it  is  not  a  vice  or  crime  that 
deserves  punishment;  on  the  contrary,  it  is  in  every  sense  a 

K  k  2 


500  ISAAC  onoBio  de  castro,  [liii.  5. 

blessing  which  God  grants  to  men  ;  punishment  for  war  if  it 
were  unjust  might  be  said  appropriately,  but  punishment  for 
peace  would  be  very  improper ;  it  is  therefore  necessary  to 
understand  it  in  i*eference  to  another  individual  who  is  injured, 
for  the  peace  of  one  side  causes  misfortune  to  the  other,  as  if 
we  said,  the  punishment  of  the  peace  of  England  was  upon 
France,  because  the  consequence  of  that  peace  was  losses  to  the 
other  kingdom  ;  thus  the  nations  say  the  punishment  of  o^i.r 
peace,  of  our  prosperity,  was  upon  that  people ;  all  our  pacifi- 
cations and  states  of  happiness  resulted  in  captivity,  banish- 
ment, and  severe  punishments  for  Israel.  That  the  nations  will 
say  this  with  all  reason  and  truth,  and  that  it  was  always  just  as 
they  confess  is  well  known  to  all  those  who  are  not  ignorant 
of  divine  and  human  history.  Thus  when  Sennacherib,  the 
king  of  Media,  prospered,  extending  the  limits  of  his  king- 
dom through  Persia  as  far  as  Syria,  his  peace  and  greatness 
were  a  punishment  to  the  ten  tribes  which  Shalmanezer  carried 
away  captive ;  when  the  Chaldean  monarchy  prospered,  Nebu- 
chadnezzar took  Judah  captive,  transferred  the  people  to  Baby- 
lon, and  converted  Jerusalem  and  its  sacred  temple  into  ashes ; 
in  the  prosperity  of  the  Persian  monarchy,  although  the  re- 
building of  the  temple  and  of  the  holy  city  was  begun  by  order 
of  C^TUs,  the  work  Avas  sadly  stopped,  being  hindered  by  his 
sou  Cambyses  at  the  request  of  the  neighbouring  nations ;  and 
as  long  as  this  empire  lasted  the  Holy  Land  sufiered  unspeak- 
able oppressions  and  miseries ;  while  the  Greek  empire  pros- 
pered, its  peace  was  a  punishment  to  Israel,  his  troubles  being 
multiplied  until  the  impious  Antiochus,  who  blasphemously 
tried  to  put  an  end  to  the  observance  of  the  divine  law,  pro- 
faned the  sacred  temple  and  led  into  captivity  a  great  number 
of  Israelites ;  and  no  king  of  that  time  enjoyed  peace,  tran- 
quillity, and  prosperous  circumstances  who  did  not  turn  his 
scourge  against  the  people  of  God  to  afflict  them ;  and  lastly, 
the  Roman  empire,  which  began  with  gentleness,  protesting 
friendship  to  the  Jewish  people  while  it  was  in  the  beginning 


liii.  5-]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  501 

of  its  greatness,  and  had  not  yet  attained  the  highest  degree  of 
prosperity,  or  the  peaceable  possession  of  the  universal  empire 
to  which  it  aspired,  when  (as  Justin,  a  Eoman  author,  says)  it 
sought  the  friendship  of  different  Eastern  nations  to  hold  them 
in  its  devotion,  whenever  it  might  wisli  to  invade  their  neigh- 
bours for  conquest,  then  it  flattered  the  Jewish  people  and 
honoured  them  with  bronze  plates  inscribed  with  the  title  of 
friends  and  companions ;  but  when  it  reached  the  highest  great- 
ness, and  enjoyed  the  peaceable  possession  of  the  greatest  wealth, 
then  the  punishment  on  Israel  began ;  the  people  began  to  feel 
the  punishment  of  the  peace  of  Rome  first  by  cruel  governors 
who  aftlicted  them,  conspiring  against  their  lives,  property,  and 
what  is  still  more  against  the  observance  of  the  sacred  laws  (as 
Josephus  narrates),  until  at  last  the  total  punishment  of  the 
peace  and  prosperity  of  Rome  fell  upon  Israel,  the  holy  city 
and  temple  being  set  fire  to,  and  the  people  taken  captive 
and  scattered  throughout  all  countries  of  the  world  up  to  this 
day.  In  the  kingdom  of  France,  as  long  as  it  was  kept  under 
by  the  English  who  possessed  a  part  of  it,  the  rest  being  divided 
among  different  princes,  the  Jews  were  received  and  for  the 
needs  of  the  kingdom  well  esteemed;  the  English  departed, 
many  provinces  were  united  under  one  crown,  France  flourished, 
became  prosperous,  enjoying  peaceably  the  universal  sway  of  the 
Gallias,  and  the  punishment  of  this  tranquillity,  this  peace,  fell 
upon  Israel,  the  clergy,  who  were  themselves  the  lords  of  France 
and  its  people,  rising  against  them  and  butchering  numbers  of 
Jews  throughout  the  kingdom,  until  the  streets  and  squares  ran 
with  the  innocent  blood,  and  those  who  could  escape  travelled 
in  their  flight  into  Poland,  Germany,  Hungary,  and  Bohemia. 
When  Spain  was  a  wretched  corner  in  the  mountains  of  Oviedo, 
Leon,  and  Old  Castile,  and  all  the  rest  of  the  country  possessed 
by  numerous  Moorish  kings,  with  whom  it  waged  continual  war, 
the  people  was  received  and  esteemed,  because  they  were  neces- 
sary to  help  with  their  money  the  military  expeditions ;  but 
the  Moors  being  expelled,  the  provinces  of  the  kingdom  being 


502  .    ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTllO.  [liii.  S. 

conquered,  including  last  of  all  even  the  kingdom  of  Granada,  all 
Spain  being  thus  left  under  one  monarch,  who  was  Ferdinand 
the  Catholic,  at  that  very  same  instant  when  he  conquered 
Granada,  he  made  the  decree  on  the  field  of  battle  by  which  the 
Jews,  who  had  helped  him  with  thiir  wealth  for  that  and  his 
other  con([uests,  were  to  depart  at  a  short  notice  as  exiles  from 
the  kingdom,  some  of  them  abandoning  the  divine  law  through 
want  of  means  or  courage  to  go  abroad,  others  departing  for 
ti'oubles,  deatli,  ajid  dishonour  throughout  the  world ;  Spain 
was  prosperous,  became  great,  enjoyed  the  peaceable  possession 
of  all  her  kingdoms,  and  the  i)unishment  of  her  peacQ  was  upon 
Israel.  Twenty  thousand  families  passed  over  into  Portugal, 
and  were  received  by  king  Don  Juan  III  on  payment  of  a  large 
sum  of  money  of  which  he  stood  in  need  for  his  foreign  con- 
quests. Don  Manuel  was  his  heir,  conquered  many  kingdoms 
in  the  Indies,  increased  his  kingdom  by  the  marriages  and 
peaces  with  Castiie,  and  with  the  riches  of  the  East  enjoyed 
peaceably  the  greatest  tranquillity;  but  the  punishment  of  his 
peace  fell  upon  Israel,  whom,  as  soon  as  he  was  prosperous,  he 
inhumanly  banished  from  his  kingdoms,  practising  the  noto- 
rious tyi'annies  which  are  narrated  in  his  Life  and  Deeds  by 
Osorio,  bishop  of  Silves  in  Algarve,  taking  fi'om  them  with 
barbarous  cruelty  their  own  innocent  children,  forcing  those 
who  had  no  time  to  embark  to  become  Christians,  and  in  default 
impiously  declaring  them  slaves,  as  if  he  had  conquered  them 
in  legitimate  war.  Yet  war  was  not  the  cause  of  the  miseries 
of  the  people,  but  the  peace  which  the  Lord  in  his  just  judg- 
ment granted  him  in  his  kingdoms  was  a  punishment  upon 
Israel.  In  short,  the  nations  never  flourished  in  prosperity  and 
peace  without  that  peace  proving  a  punishment  for  the  people 
of  God ;  and  this  is  what  Isaiah  means  in  this  verse,  that  the 
undeceived  nations  will  say  the  punishment  of  our  peace  was 
upon  him,  because  our  happiness,  our  peace,  always  proved  to 
be  miserable  punishment  upon  Israel ;  when  the  Lord  delivered 
him,  for  his  sins,  into  our  hands,  we  impiously  treated  him  as  a 


liii.  5.]  ISAAC    OllOBIO    DE    CASTRO.  503 

slave,  using  our  prosperity  to  his  damage  ;  about  which  the 
same  Isaiah  repi'oves  them  (xlvii.  5),  'Thou  didst  shew  them 
no  mercy,  upon  the  aged  thou  didst  heavily  lay  thy  yoke.' 

And  by  7ds  wounds  we  were  healed.  Certainly  the  divine 
prophet  used  a  veiy  subtle  figure  of  rhetoric  in  this  verse,  which 
consists  in  turning  the  proposition  by  another  contrary ;  the 
preceding  clause  said,  that  the  nations  will  say,  our  prosperity, 
our  peace,  was  a  punishment  to  Israel ;  and  then  he  converts  it : 
and  the  wounds  or  punishment  of  Israel  will  be  for  us  peace, 
welfare,  and  happiness ;  our  peace  caused  him  punishment, 
sickness,  and  wounds;  and  his  wounils  will  cause  us  comfort 
and  health ;  he  was  wounded  for  our  peace,  and  we  are  healed 
through  his  wounds ;  and  thus  he  says,  The  punishment  of  our 
peace  was  upon  him,  and  through  his  wounds  we  were  healed. 
The  prophet  says  that  fi-om  the  troubles  of  Israel  health  resulted 
to  the  nations,  and  so  they  themselves  will  confess :  he  does  not 
mean  to  say  that  Israel  by  his  captivity  will  make  expiation 
for  the  sins  of  the  nations,  as  the  Christian  doctors  say  and  im- 
pute to  us,  for  our  captivity  is  for  our  own  sins,  not  for  those  of 
the  Gentiles ;  but  we  also  understand  that  Israel  bearing  patiently 
this  painful  captivity,  and  remaining  firm  in  the  divine  faith 
and  law  of  God,  prepares  himself  for  and  makes  himself  worthy 
of  the  universal  redemption  for  which  he  hopes,  to  which  the 
infinite  mercy  of  the  Lord  will  contribute  much  more  than  our 
own  merits ;  and  we  know,  from  the  teaching  of  Holy  Writ, 
that  from  these  troubles  and  sufferings  good  will  result  not  only 
for  Israel,  but  also  for  many  nations,  who  will  participate  in 
the  happiness  of  God's  people  at  that  happy  time,  when  they 
will  be  cnred  of  their  defiling  sickness  of  idolatry,  as  Isaiah  has 
said  (ii.  17,  18,  xlv.  23):  the  nations  will  be  cured  of  their 
envy,  their  hatred,  and  their  vain  covetousness,  enjoying  per- 
petual tranquillity  and  perpetual  peace,  being  united  in  one 
cheerful  worship  of  God  and  mutual  love.  This  health  the 
Lord  promises  the  nations  at  the  time  of  the  redemption  of 
Israel  by  the  same  prophet  (ii.  4).    Such  is  the  health  the  nation^ 


504  ISAAC  onOBio  de  castro.  [liii.  6. 

will  obtain  when  they  turn  lunnbly  to  their  Creator,  and  recover 
from  their  Gentile  rebellion,  with  which  for  so  many  centuries 
they  persecuted  Israel,  obliging  him  to  transgress  the  divine 
laws,  and  to  profane  the  days  which  the  divine  ]\Iajesty  wished 
should  be  consecrated  to  his  honour ;  recovering  from  this  rest- 
lessness, they  will  pass  into  the  happy  extreme  of  health,  as 
Isaiah  jirophesied  in  his  last  chapter  (verse  23),  and  as  the  Lord 
promises  by  Zechariah  (xiv.  16).  This  is  the  health  that  the 
nations  will  enjoy  at  the  redemption  of  Israel ;  this  is  the  fruit 
that  the  pious  of  them  will  gather  from  the  troubles  and  wounds 
which  he  suffered  in  his  cajjtivity,  from  the  patience  with  which 
he  endured  his  sufferings  and  sicknesses  for  so  long  a  time;  and 
then  they  will  Fay,  Our  tranquillity,  our  peace,  was  for  his 
punishment,  and  his  wounds  were  in  order  that  at  the  time  of 
his  redemption  we  might  be  jointly  purified  of  our  uncleanness. 
And  this  the  nations  will  confess,  saying.  The  punishment  of  our 
•peace  was  upon  him,  and  throujh  his  xvounds  we  tvere  healed. 

*  The  nations  continue  their  confession,  and  say  that  they 
all  went  astray  like  sheep,  and  followed  their  own  ways  like 
strayed  sheep  which,  being  lost,  follow  different  paths,  getting 
far  away  from  their  flock  and  from  the  true  track  which  they 
ought  to  have  followed  to  go  to  their  shepherd ;  thus  the  nations 
confess  that  they  went  far  astray  from  the  path  of  truth,  devi- 
ating through  different  tracks,  divided  into  various  sects,  and  fol- 
lowing forms  of  idolatry  and  superstition  not  commanded  by  their 
Creator ;  the  nations  do  not  say  that  they  sinned,  but  that  they 
went  astray,  because  they  intended  to  refer  to  the  vanity  of  the 
false  worships  which  they  followed ;  and  so,  although  on  re- 
penting they  confess  their  weakness,  if  they  do  not  exculpate 
themselves,  at  least  they  endeavour  to  defend  themselves  on  the 
plea  of  ignorance ;  they  say  that  they  erred,  believing  that  they 
were  right ;  and  indeed  the  pious  among  the  nations  would  not 
have  followed  the  evil  path  had  they  been  well  infonned  of  the 
right  one,  and  even  some  of  the  impious  would  not  have  persisted 
in  their  errors  had  they  been  sure  they  were  in  error.     Thus 


liii.  6.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  505 

the  prophet  calls  them  errors  in  distinction  from  the  other  sins 
which  belong  to  human  frailty ;  he  does  not  speak  of  those  sins 
inherent  in  all  mankind  ever  since  Adam,  and  there  is  no  man 
who  would  justify  these  before  the  Lord,  but  he  ?peaks  only  of 
the  false  rites  and  vain  sects  into  which  the  Gentile  nations  are 
subdivided,  and  still  persevere  in,  till  Israel  with  his  redemp- 
tion shall  be  the  cause  of  their  true  enlightenment,  and  the  re- 
tractation of  their  errors,  when  they  will  say  our  fathers  taught 
us  falsehood.  Now  our  opponents  cannot  understand  this  con- 
fession to  be  made  by  Israel,  for  although,  as  they  pretend,  he 
may  have  erred  in  his  divine  worship,  which  is  impossible,  it 
could  not  be  affirmed  of  him,  that  each  one  went  on  in  his  own 
Avay,  for  Israel  always  followed  one  and  the  same  way,  the  sacred 
law  of  Moses,  ^vithout  dividing  into  dilFei-ent  sects ;  on  the 
contrary,  the  whole  of  Israel  always  was  and  still  is  agreed  in 
one  and  the  same  faith,  and  one  and  the  same  observance 
throughout  the  world ;  therefore  it  could  never  be  said  of  the 
Israelites  that  eveiy  one  followed  his  own  way ;  and  as  this 
clause  has  no  reference  to  personal  or  ordinary  sins,  it  remains 
evident  that  it  is  fulfilled  only  in  the  Gentile  nations,  who  fol- 
low so  many  different  sects  and  ways  in  their  worship,  as  is 
well  known.  And  Adonai  caused  the  sins  of  us  all  to  fall 
upon  him.  This  is  the  same  as  Avas  said  before,  that  the  sins 
of  the  nations  crushed  the  people,  wounded  and  afflicted  them ; 
only  now  he  expresses  it  by  another  more  elegant  phrase,  that 
the  Lord  wished  in  his  just  judgment  that  the  iniquity  of  the 
nations  should  be  exerted  against  Israel,  as  a  target  against 
which  the  arrows  of  their  cruelty  and  hatred  were  to  be  shot. 
This  is  signified  by  the  word  to  fall  upon  or  against  him,  for  in 
the  sacred  language  it  is  the  same  as  to  attack,  to  meet  another, 
to  kill  or  hurt  him.  The  same  expression  is  met  with  in  2  Sam. 
i.  15,  I  Kings  :ii.  31,  34,  i  Sam.  ii.  17,  which  passages  prove 
that  the  Hebrew  word  which  we  render  to  fall  upon  is  the 
same  as  to  encounter  or  attack  anybody ;  and  so  the  Christian 
doctors  teach,  more  especially  those  most  learned  Hebrew  scholars 


506  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [liii.  6. 

Buxtorf  antl  Cocceius  in  their  dictionaries.  If  this  is  granted, 
the  nations  say  that  the  Lord  desired  that  their  iniquity  and  male- 
volence should  fall  upou  Israel  to  destroy  him,  and  afterwards 
afflict  him  in  his  captivity ;  in  this  same  sense  the  Septuagint 
renders  it,  '  And  delivered  them  up  to  the  wickedness  of  us  all,' 
which  is  equivalent  to  saying  that  he  exposed  him  to  the  attack 
of  our  wickedness,  to  suffer  its  cruelty ;  and  so  it  is  fulfilled  in 
that  people,  on  whom  the  malignity  and  mortal  hatred  of  all  the 
nations  fall  and  make  their  attack,  causing  him  exile,  death, 
and  every  kind  of  misery.  Therefore  the  meaning  of  the  whole 
verse  is  as  follows:  All  we  ivent  astray,  each  nation  following 
paths  far  distant  from  God's  way,  being  divided  into  various 
sects,  from  which  resulted  detestation  and  abomination  of  Israel, 
because  he  persevered  in  the  divine  law  which  his  forefathers 
professed ;  but  notwithstanding  this,  that  we  were  in  error  and 
he  was  right  in  the  true  worship,  still,  in  his  divine  judgment, 
he  permitted  the  inifjuity  and  malevolence  of  our  errors  to  be 
employed  against  Israel,  falling  upon  and  attacking  him  with 
all  possible  means  to  ruin  him,  and  caused  the  sin  of  us  all  to 
fall  upon  or  attack  Israel.  But  it  might  be  objected  to  this 
interpretation  of  this  vers^e,  that  it  seems  inconsistent  that  the 
wickedness  of  the  nations  should  fall  upon  Israel  to  injure  him, 
and  that  they  should  confess  it  to  be  so,  and  say  at  the  same 
time  that  the  Lord  desired  it  to  be  so,  and  that  lie  caused  their 
sins  and  wickedness  to  fall  upon  Israel.  But  this  is  no  incon- 
sistency, but  a  part  of  the  divine  economy  which  the  majesty 
of  God  has  always  followed  in  the  government  of  his  creatures, 
making  the  sins  of  the  one  to  be  instruments  for  the  punish- 
ment of  the  other ;  yet  he  who  is  God's  instrument  is  not  there- 
fore acquitted  of  sin.  Pharaoh  and  his  people  were  an  instru- 
ment with  which  God  afflicted  Israel ;  God  ordered  that  Joseph 
should  be  sold  by  his  brethren,  as  he  himself  ;told  him  after 
JacoVj's  death,  that  for  their  good  the  Lord  sent  him  thither ; 
but  the  brethren  were  not  acquitted  of  their  sin.  God  punished 
David,  using  Absalom  as  his  instrument  to  afflict  him,  but  Absalom 


liii.  6.]  I?AAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  r)07 

sinned  grievously  in  persecuting  David.  Nebuchadnezzar  was 
God's  instrument  for  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  and  her 
people ;  but  God  says  that  he  would  severely  punish  Nebuchad- 
nezzar for  having  executed  this  punishrnent.  God  avails  him- 
self of  the  wickedness  of  one  man  to  punish  the  sins  of  another, 
and  the  man  uses  his  free-will  in  being  wicked,  and  wilfully 
incurs  the  sin  of  injuring  another;  for  God  obliges  no  one 
to  be  wicked,  nor  takes  away  from  him  his  liberty  to  be  good ; 
only  God,  knowing  that  one  man  will  spontaneously  be  wicked 
and  cruel  against  another,  permits  it  to  be  so,  and  makes  use 
of  the  spontaneous  wickedness  of  that  man  for  the  necessary 
punishment  of  him  who  deserves  it.  This  is  what  the  nations 
will  say,  that  the  Lord  wished  to  make  use  of  their  sins  and 
wickedness,  setting  them  against  Isi'ael,  as  an  instrument  to  punish 
and  afflict  him,  as  he  made  use  of  the  iniquity  of  Pharaoh  and 
Nebuchadnezzar  to  punish  the  crimes  of  his  people,  and  so  he 
threatened  by  the  samelsaiah  (ix.  i  o), '  And  Adonai  will  strengthen 
the  adversaries  of  Rezin  against  him,  and  join  his  enemies  toge- 
ther, Aram  on  the  east,  and  the  Philistines  oiJ  the  west,  and 
they  shall  swallow  Israel  with  open  mouth;'  which  means  that 
the  Lord  would  make  use  of  all  these  hostile  nations  to  vent 
their  hatred  and  iniquity  upon  Israel  and  worry  and  destroy 
him,  as  they  did  in  the  past  and  present  captivity,  at  the  end 
of  which  the  nations  will  acknowledge  and  confess  this,  saying, 
'And  Adonai  made  our  iniquity  to  fall  upon  him;  he  was 
oppressed  and  afflicted  and  did  not  open  liis  mouth;  he  was 
can-ied  like  a  lamb  to  the  slaughter-house,  and  like  a  sheep  before 
the  shearer  he  was  dumb  and  did  not  open  his  mouth.'  After 
having  related  this  confession,  the  nations  owning  the  injustice 
with  which  they  treated  Israel,  the  prophet  goes  on  to  describe 
the  sufferings  and  immense  patience  of  the  people  in  their  cap- 
tivity, and  foretel  their  future  happiness ;  and  beginning  with 
this  verse,  he  says,  He  was  oppressed  and  afflicted,  but  for  all 
this  he  did  not  open  his  mouth  ;  although  continually  perse- 
cuted, afflicted,  exiled,  and  treated  worse  than  the  vilest  slaves, 


508  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [liii.  8. 

Israel  never  attempted  his  own  defence,  or  took  courage  to 
resist  his  injiuics,  conscious  that  his  own  transgressions  and 
sins  held  his  hands  tied  up,  and  that  the  nations  would  never 
liave  been  able  to  injure  liim  if  the  Lord  in  his  divine  justice 
had  not  ceased  to  protect  him  against  them  as  he  did  before, 
and  holding  before  his  mind's  eyes  God's  pi'edictions  in  his  law 
foretelling  the  oppressions  of  this  captivity  (Deut.  xxxi.  17, 
xxxii.  30).  This  being  known  to  Israel,  he  suffered  without 
seeking  means  of  defence,  and  never  opened  his  mouth  ;  on  the 
contrary,  he  was  humble  like  a  lamb  at  the  slaughter,  and  like 
a  sheep  before  its  shearer,  suffering  death  with  ignominy  and 
amid  the  imprecations  of  the  populace,  losing  liberty,  property, 
and  even  his  own  children  at  the  hands  of  tyranny.  So  Isaiah 
expresses  it  in  this  verse,  and  before  him  David  had  said  it  in 
the  same  words  (Psalm  xliv.  12,  23). 

*  From  restraint  and  judgment  he  was  taken,  etc.  Arias 
Montanus  translates,  He  was  taken  away  from  confinement, 
understanding  it  of  incarceration;  the  version  of  the  LXX 
says  from  opposition,  that  is,  from  oppression,  distress ;  but 
other  Christian  doctors  well  versed  in  the  holy  language,  as 
Cocceius  in  his  Hebrew  Dictionary,  translate  with  full  projiriety 
from  power,  because  the  Hebrew  woixl  which  Ave  render  restraint 
properly  signifies  j^ower,  reign,  domination,  as  Buxtorf  explains 
it :  and  this  is  clearly  seen  from  the  sacred  text.  In  i  Sam. 
ix.  17,  speaking  of  Saul,  the  Lord  makes  use  of  the  same  word, 
'This  same  shall  reign  over  my  people  ;'  and  in  Judg.  xviii.  7, 
'  He  who  should  possess  power  or  command,'  the  same  word  is 
used  as  here  employed  by  the  prophet,  which  can  be  also  ren- 
dered restraint,  as  the  king  restrains  his  subjects  within  the 
limits  of  the  laws.  And  so  we  shall  translate  not  only  in  agree- 
ment with  the  truth  and  propriety,  but  also  supported  by  the 
interpretation  followed  by  the  Christian  doctors  :  He  was  re- 
moved from  the  kingdom  and  judgment ;  that  is  to  say,  they 
took  from  him  the  power  and  kingdom  of  Israel,  and  the  judi- 
cial power  or  government  which  he  administered  for  himself, 


liii.  8.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  509 

which  the  Lord  had  instituted  for  liim  in  the  desert,  since  it  is 
the  same  thing  to  say  they  removed  him  from  tlie  kingdom 
and  government  as  to  affirm  that  the  one  and  the  other  were 
removed  from  him.  And  this  is  what  happened  to  Israel,  whom 
the  nations  deprived  and  dispossessed  of  the  rule  over  his  own 
lands,  and  of  his  own  ancient  government  and  jurisdiction  which 
he  freely  exercised  on  his  own  subjects  in  accordance  with  the 
sacred  laws,  carrying  off  his  kings  and  his  populations  into  a 
miserable  captivity,  desolating  liis  towns  and  fortresses,  without 
leaving  any  form  of  state  or  government,  and  fulfilling  what  the 
Lord  had  predicted  in  Deuteronomy  (xxviii.  36,  49,  50,  52). 
For  the  fulfilment  of  this  divine  decree  the  Lord  employed  the 
instrumentality  of  the  nations,  who  deprived  Israel  of  his  king 
and  judges,  stripped  him  of  his  dominion,  of  his  many  strong 
towns  and  provinces,  of  his  government  and  judicatxire,  both 
civil  and  ecclesiastical,  both  of  which  were  instituted  by  the 
divine  law  which  he  promulgated  on  Sinai ;  and  the  prophet 
says  in  our  verse,  that  this  will  become  well  known  to  all  the 
world,  that  among  the  greatest  troubles  of  Israel,  the  most 
lamentable  was  the  taking  away  his  kingdom,  and  the  depriving 
him  of  his  judicatui'e  ;  and  therefore  it  is  said,  from  restraint 
or  kingdom  and  Jroiii  judgment  he  was  taken  away.  And  who 
ivill  declare  his  generation  1  etc.  He  means,  when  once  ex- 
pelled from  his  holy  country  and  deprived  of  his  jurisdiction 
and  government,  who  will  celebrate  his  wonderful  generation  ? 
who  will  esteem  or  make  account  of  his  miraculous  beginnings  % 
when  deprived  of  dominion,  state,  tribunal  of  justice,  and  native 
land,  and  scattered  and  despised,  who  will  talk  of,  or  set  any 
value  on  his  glorious  generation  and  origin  %  who  will  proclaim 
that  from  the  very  beginning  of  the  formation  of  the  world  God 
chose  him  as  a  rule  for  all  the  other  nations  of  the  earth,  creating 
and  arranging  the  world  in  proportion  to  the  children  of  Israel  ? 
So  it  is  expressed  in  Deuteronomy  xxxii.  8  :  '  When  the  Most 
High  divided  to  the  nations  their  inheritance,  when  he  separated 
the  children  of  man,  he  set  the  bounds  of  the  people  according 


510  ISAAC    OEOBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [lui.  8. 

to  tlie  number  of  the  cliililren  of  Israel.'  This  is  wliat  the  pro- 
phet says,  that  Israel  outside  the  land  of  the  living,  which  is 
the  land  of  Israel,  dispossessed  of  his  kingdom  and  jurisdic- 
tion or  government,  scattered  like  a  vile  slave  among  the  nations, 
must  necessarily  fail  to  gain  that  celebrity  and  estimation  which 
his  illustrious  generation  or  origin  deserves ;  no  one  will  speak 
of  it  to  honour  it ;  on  the  contrary,  they  will  seek  in  it  what 
they  can  find  to  despise,  and  say,  that  the  natural  race  of  Israel 
was  never  held  in  estimation  by  the  Lord  his  God,  nor  deserves 
to  be  held  so  by  men;  that  another  spiritual  Israel,  composed 
of  the  nations  themselves,  is  the  beloved  of  God,  and  the  one 
worthy  to  have  his  generation  celebx'ated  and  proclaimed,  not 
that  of  the  Israel  they  call  carnal,  as  being  the  true  and  real 
successor  of  Jacob,  for  this  generation  has  been  for  many  cen- 
turies condemned  and  rejected  by  God.  This  forms  the  com- 
plaint of  the  prophet,  that  Israel  in  his  dispersion  and  slavery 
will  have  no  one  to  celebrate  his  generation,  but  only  to  re- 
proach and  despise  it :  And  viho  tvill  declare  his  generation  ? 
as  if  to  say,  None  of  the  nations,  since  none  of  them  will  hold 
it  in  estimation.  That  by  the  land  of  the  living  the  land  of  Israel 
is  meant,  is  clear  from  Holy  Scripture,  e.g.  Psalm  xxvii.  13, 
Hi.  7,  cxvi.  9,  cxlii.  6  ;  and  still  more  clearly  Ezekiel  xxvi. 
20,  where,  the  Lord  speaking  .igainst  Tyre,  who  grew  proud 
against  Jenisalem,  the  prophet  threatens  Tyre  with  destruction 
and  ruin  from  the  king  of  Babylon,  but  that  Jerusalem  would 
return  in  future  time  to  her  former  splendour,  calling  her  '  the 
land  of  the  living.'  And  in  xxxii.  23  he  prophesies  against 
Pharaoh,  the  king  of  Egypt,  and  all  his  people,  that  they  will 
be  killed  and  destroyed  for  the  injuries  which  they  inflicted  on 
Jerusalem, '  Because  they  caused  terror  in  the  land  of  the  living ;' 
and  he  repeats  the  same  phrase  in  many  of  the  following  verses; 
so  Isaiah  says  here.  For  he  was  cut  off  from  the  land  of  the 
living,  Israel  was  driven  out  of  Jerusalem  and  every  part  of 
the  Holy  Land  which  is  styled  the  land  of  the  living,  because 
Israel  lived  in  it  a  spiritual  life  through  the  special  assistance 


liii.  8.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  511 

of  the  Lord,  who  breathed  his  divine  Spirit  upon  that  people 
through  the  sacrifices,  and  on  departing  from  it  he  finds  him- 
self deprived  of  that  influence,  that  special  coiniexion  with  his 
Creator,  and  consequently  of  that  spiritual  life  which  he  then 
enjoyed,  and  to  which  he  now  aspires  by  observing  the  divine 
law,  although  with  greater  difficulty  and  more  imperfectly, 
through  lacking  that  life  or  influence  which  he  enjoyed  in  the 
land  of  the  living,  in  his  own  holy  country. 

For  the  transgression  of  my  feople  was  he  wounded.  We 
might  well  translate,  following  the  true  meaning  of  the  Hebrew 
word,  they  were  ivounded  [literally  wound  to  theni],  and  not  he, 
for  it  is  really  in  the  plural  and  not  in  the  singular,  as  the 
Christians  translate  it,  in  order  to  apply  this  and  the  whole 
chapter  to  a  single  individual,  the  Messiah.  But  those  of 
them  who  understand  the  sacred  language  will  know  themselves 
that  it  is  plural  and  must  be  read  they  tvere  ivoimded,  which 
would  leave  no  doubt  that  the  whole  of  the  chapter  refers  to 
Israel ;  but  as  on  doctrinal  gi'ounds  they  cannot  understand  it  so, 
but  only  as  the  Gospel  requires,  they  are  obliged  to  take  it  singu- 
lar, although  the  word  really  I'equii'es  the  plui'al  number  tJiey  ; 
and  seeking  for  some  example  in  Holy  Scripture  to  defend  that 
interpretation,  they  avail  themselves  of  the  verse  of  the  prophet 
which  says,  T7iey  made  idol  and  bowed  doivn  to  it  (Is.  xliv.  15). 
There  the  word  to  it  is  the  same  as  the  word  to  them  in  our 
chapter,  and  therewith  they  think  they  have  proved  their  object, 
that  is,  that  although  it  always  has  a  plnral  import,  it  can  some- 
times be  translated  singular,  as  in  the  text  adduced,  where  it 
cannot  be  rendered  to  them,  since  it  says  idol  in  the  singular, 
and  it  would  not  be  good  grammar  to  say,  '  he  made  an  idol 
and  bowed  down  to  them,'  but  to  it,  in  accordance  with  the 
number.  But  they  cannot  escape  in  this  way,  for  even  in  the 
quoted  passage  they  must  render,  '  they  made  idol  and  bowed 
down  to  them,'  want  of  numerical  concord  being  a  very 
frequent  style  in  Holy  Scripture,  ju?t  as  it  is  many  times 
said,  'and  all  Israel   assembled  themselves^  instead  of  saying 


512  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [Hii.  8. 

himself,  '  and  all  the  people  they  said,'  '  thy  people  they  all 
Raints,'  while  in  strict  grunimar  ought  to  say  Ae  'all  saint/ 
This  takes  place  when  the  noun  does  not  imply  a  singular  ob- 
ject, but  a  collection  or  multitude  of  objects,  even  when  in  tlie 
singular  form,  as  j^eople,  Israel,  and  similar  words,  which,  though 
singular,  imply  a  multitude ;  so  in  our  verse  it  is  said,  '  they 
made  idol ;'  although  it  is  true  that  idol  is  in  the  singular, 
yet  it  still  denotes  a  multitude,  every  kind  of  idol,  just  as 
when  God  says,  '  thou  shalt  make  no  idol  for  thyself,'  we  must 
not  understand  merely  one  in  the  singular,  but  the  whole  collec- 
tion and  every  kind  of  idol ;  and  in  the  verse  which  they  allege 
it  is  not  said  that  they  made  any  particulai*  idol,  but  that  '  they 
made  idol,'  that  is,  that  they  fell  into  the  sin  of  idol-making, 
not  one  only  but  many,  '  and  they  bowed  down  to  them.'  Accord- 
ingly it  is  always  true  that  the  Hebrew  word  (lumo)  is  plural, 
and  means  to  them,  and  therefore  the  verse  Ave  are  explaining 
will  say  thei/  were  wounded  ;  for  although  it  had  before  spoken 
of  the  i)eople  in  the  singular,  now  it  says  in  the  plural  theij, 
which  happens  at  every  turn  in  Holy  Scripture ;  and  by  trans- 
lating it  so,  it  becomes  quite  clear  that  the  nations  speak  of 
Israel  and  not  of  any  particular  individual.  But  it  does  not  the 
least  affect  the  interpretation  of  the  verse  whether  it  says  tloey 
were  or  he  was  wounded ;  and  we  shall  continue  to  render  it 
Ae  was  wounded,  that  it  may  not  appear  to  offer  any  difficulty 
to  the  sense  in  which  we  explain  the  chapter,  in  which  the 
nations  say  all  that  we  have  stated  and  explained  in  the  preceding 
verses  from  the  first,  Who  helitved  our  report  ?  to  the  sixth, 
which  concludes,  and  Adonai  caused  the  sin  or  invpdty  of  us 
all  to  fall  up)on  him.  Up  to  this  point  the  nations  make  their 
confession,  but  in  the  remainder  of  the  chapter  they  are  no 
longer  introduced,  and  the  prophet  alone  speaks,  pitying  the 
miseries  of  the  people,  and  saying  things  which  the  nations 
could  never  have  said  or  meant  at  the  time  of  the  redemption, 
some  being  matters  which  they  never  heard  of  or  understood, 
others  absolutely  prophetical,  as  the  last  .verses  (lo,  ii,  and  12). 


liii.  8.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO,  513 

The  prophet,  after  predicting  the  future  ruin  and  dispersion 
of  the  people,  saying  how  it  would  he  afflicted,  would  not  open 
its  mouth,  and  Avould  he  taken  away  as  a  lamb,  would  suffer  its 
trouhles  with  the  highest  patience,  and  as  a  sheep  before  the 
shearej-,  and  would  be  banished  from  its  holy  land  and  kingdom, 
deprived  of  power  and  jurisdiction  over  its  own  people,  con- 
cludes by  telling  the  cause  of  so  great  a  punishment,  and  justi- 
fying the  justice  of  God  in  expelling  from  the  land  he  had  mira- 
culously given  to  their  forefathers,  his  people  he  had  chosen, 
loved,  and  favoured  with  such  wonders,  and  in  delivering  it 
into  the  hands  of  its  enemies  to  suffer  the  cruel  wounds  of  its 
prolonged  captivity  ;  and  he  says  that  this  was  for  no  other 
cause  than  Israel's,  rebellion  against  tlae  Lord  its  God,  from 
whom  it  had  received  so  many  and  such  wonderful  favours,  a 
crime  of  high  trea&on,  from  the  punishment  for  which  not  even 
the  first-born  son  can  escape ;  he  mentions  the  crime  in  a  single 
word  which  comprehends  the  highest  wickedness  :  For  the  rehel- 
Hon  of  my  'pcoph  ivas  he  woiindi'd ;  my  peoj>lle  was  wounded, 
says  the  proplict,  for  his  rebellion,  because  he  rebelled  against 
his  Creator,  transgressing  the  divine  law  by  idolatry,  murder, 
incest,  hatred,  and  every  kind  of  crime,  leaching  at  the  time  of 
the  second  temple  such  an  enox'mous  pitch  of  corruption,  that 
Josephus  says  it  was  impossible  for  God  to  forbear  from  exe- 
cuting his  anger  upon  a  people  which  continued  to  perpetrate 
such  atrocities,  without  respect  for  Gcwl,  the-  holy  temple,  or  the 
sacred  things  it  contained — rivalry,  ambition,  and  tyranny  alone 
prevailing.  In  short,  Israel  rebelled  against  the  Lord  his  God, 
and  he  poured  upon  him  the  curses  he  had  foretold  in  the  divine 
law;  and  therefore  the  prophet  says,  justifying  God's  severity 
and  justice,  F(yf-  the  rebellion  of  my,  peojple  was  he  imunded ;  Israel 
Wits  wounded  for  his  crimes,  was  stricken  and  left  without  come- 
liness, and  disfigured  for  his  sins  and  rebellions  against  his 
Benefactor,  being  ungrateful  for  such  supernatural  favours,  aa 
Moses  predicted  in  his  song  (verse  6).  But  Israel  ungra- 
ciously rebelled,  and  the  Lord  promises  to  expose  him  wounded 

Li 


514  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [liii.  9. 

before  the  eyes  of  the  nations,  as  he  said  by  Isaiah  (i.  4),  'They 
have  forsaken  Adouai,  they  liave  provoked  the  Holy  One  of 
Israel  unto  anger,  they  are  gone  away  backward,  \Miy  should 
ye  be  stricken  ?  will  ye  revolt  more  and  more  1  The  whole 
liead  is  sick,  and  the  whole  heart  faint.  From  the  sole  of  the 
foot  even  unto  the  head  there  is  no  soundness  in  it,  but  wounds, 
and  bruises,  and  putrifying  sores ;  they  have  not  been  healed.' 
Such  is  the  condition  to  which  Isaiah  says  the  Lord  would 
reduce  his  pcoj^le  for  its  rebellion,  and  so  he  is  represented  by 
the  nations  in  this  chapter  and  in  the  same  words ;  tlierefore 
no  doubt  is  left  that  Isiael  is  the  subject  of  whom  they  speak; 
and  the  prophet  repeats  the  same  thing  speaking  of  the  same 
people,  and  recapitulates  in  the  fifty-thiixi  chapter  what  he 
had  said  in  the  first,  when  he  says,  Ajid  for  the  rebellion  of  my 
people  he  was  tvounded,  or  they  were  wounded,  which  is  the 
same ;  he,  speaking  of  Israel  collectively,  tliey,  distributively, 
the  individuals  forming  the  people.  The  proj^het  calls  him 
my,  either  in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  who  never  ceased  to  call 
Israel  my  people,  even  when  least  obedient,  and  when  his  divine 
^lajesty  was  most  irritated  by  his  excesses;  or  the  prophet 
speaking  in  his  own  name,  who  in  his  love  and  sympathy  for  his 
brethren  even  considers  it  an  honour  to  call  them  his  people, 
just  as  the  Lord,  on  the  occasion  of  the  sin  of  the  golden  calf, 
speaking  to  Moses,  said,  '  Thy  people  hath  sinned,'  thus  incul- 
cating that,  although  Israel  may  sin,  no  one  should  think  him- 
self dishonoured  by  acknowledging  him  as  his  own  people,  since 
God  himself  does  not  despise  him,  but,  on  the  contrary,  tenderly 
caresses  him,  saying,  '  0  my  people,  what  have  I  done  unto 
thee  %  and  wherein  have  I  afHicted  thee  ]  answer  me.'  Isaiah 
was  well  acquainted  with  this  teaching,  and  therefore  says.  For 
the  rebellion  of  my  j^eoplp,  for  although  sinful  and  rebellious,  he 
is  still  my  people,  and  there  is  none  other  under  heaven  with 
whom  I  can  be  honoured. 

'•'  The  prophet  says   that  Israel   received   three  punishments 
ut  the  hands  of  the  nations,  the  deprivation  of  his  power  or 


liii.  9,]  ISAAC    OROiBIO   DE    CAStRO.'  515 

kingdom,  of  the  jurisdiction  and  government  which  God  had 
instituted  for  him  wltile  in  the  desert,  and  exile  from  the  holy 
lau  !  aiucng  die  naiious ;    he  saya  that   he  d(;parted  iVt^ui  (lio 
land  of  the  living,  and  then  fullowa  the  state  in  which   Isiaet 
vill   remain   among   the   nations.      He   was   necessarily  dead 
ianiongst  them,  since  he  had  been  cast  out  of  the  laud  of  the' 
living,  being -deprived  of  that  spiritual  life  which  he  enjoyed 
through  the  divine  influence,  as  we  have  .slated  above.     And  aaf 
death  is  followed  by  burial,  so  Israel  dying  among  the  nafiona 
is  buried  among  them.     Therefore  the  prophet  says,  that  being 
exiled  from  the  land  of  the  living,  he  gave  or  made  his  grave 
amongst  the  wicked,  he  was  deprived  of  that  spiritual  life  and 
buried  amongst  the  nations.      And  the  Lord  has  said  by  the 
prophet  Ezekiel  (xxxvii.  11-14),  that  the  house  of  Israel  out- 
side the  holy  country  is  to  be  considered  dead  and  buried  ;  iu 
this  passage  the  Lord  very  cl'arly  sa} s,  that  Israel  being  up- 
rooted from  the  holy  land  is  dead  and  buried  among  the  nations, 
that  it  has  lost  its  life  because  it  has  gone  forth  from  the  land 
of  the  living,  that  he  will  bring  them  out  of  the  graves  which 
he  made  amongst  the  Avicked  of  the  nations,  and  will  restore 
him  to  the  holy  land,  to  live  again  not  only  the  natural  hut  also 
the  spiritual  life  by  means  of  his  divine  inspiration  which  he 
communicates  in  the  laud  of  the  living  ;  therefore  he  concludes, 
*  And  I  will  put  my  Spirit  in  you  and  ye  shall  live ; '   I  will 
breathe    on  you  that   gracious  influence   which    vivified   your 
parents,  that  ye  may  live.       Accordingly  Isaiah  in  this  verse 
says  nothing  different  from  what  the  Lord  says  by  Ezekiel,  but 
the  same  thing  in  almost  the  same  words.  Because  he  was  up- 
rooted from  the  land  of  the  living,  he  made  tvith  the  wicked  (that 
is,  with  the  nations)  his  grave,  which  the  Lord  promises  to  open 
and  restore  him  to  the  land  of  Israel  that  he  may  live. 

And  with  the  rich  in  his  deaths.  Well  might  Israel,  had  not 
his  sins  been  so  enormous,  be  buried  among  the  nations,  being 
deprived  of  that  spiritual  life  which  he  before  possessed  in  his 
country,  without  sufi'eriug  other  bodily  torments  which  couti- 

l1  2 


515  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE   CASTRO,  [Hiu  9, 

nually  harass  him  in  liis  exile ;  but  he  provoked  the  wrath  of 
his  Creator,  and  so  he  determined  not  only  to  deprive  him  of 
that  spiritual  life,  but  also  to  give  him  up  to  corporal  torments 
and  miseries,  which  he  was  to  suffer  at  the  hands  of  the  power- 
ful among  the  nations ;  and  therefore  he  says  not  only  that  as 
dead   he  made  his  grave  with   the  wicked,  but  also  with   the 
powerful  iu  his  deaths,  that   is,  his    troubles  and   calamities, 
not  only  the  deatlis  which   that  people  has   suffered  through 
the  cruelty  and  tyranny  of  those  who  rule  over  him  through- 
out  the  world,   but   also    other    innumerable    evils   sometimes 
more  ])ainful  than  death  itself.      He  says  tlie  rich,  which  in  the 
holy  language  is  the  same  as  powerful :   and  so  the  Christian 
doctors  interpret  it,  and  jjut  the  word  in  the  singular,  the  rich 
one  instead  of  the  rich  ones,  adopting  this  idiom  of  the  lioly  lan- 
guage, the  use  of  one  number  for  the  other.  The  literal  meaning 
of  the  whole  verse  then  is,  that  Israel  being  deprived  of  his  king- 
dom, of  his  government,  of  his  home,  iu  the  holy  land,  would  be 
deprived  of  the  spiritual  life  that  there  was  communicated  to 
him,  and  as  dead  would  make  his  grave  among  the  wicked,  who 
are  the  nations  of  the  earth,  suffering  at  the  same  time  the 
deaths,  vexations,  and  tyrannies  of  the  powerful   of  this  age, 
until  the  time  of  his  redemption  arrives ;  and  so  he  says,  IJe 
made  his  grave  with  the  wicked,  and  with  the  rich  in  his  deaths; 
a/thoiigh  he   dealt   not  falsely  and   there   was   no  deceit  in  his 
viouth.     The   prophet  said  in  the   preceding  verse  that  Israel 
suffered  the  cruel  wound  of  captivity  for  his  iniquity  and  re- 
bellion, and  now  he  says   in   this  verse  that  he  did   not  act 
falsely,  and  there  was  no  deceit  in  his  mouth,  which  appears 
contradictoiy,  as  at  the  same  time  he  condemns  and  acquits 
him,  declares  his  innocence  and  accuses  him  of  crime  :  but  it 
is  not  so;  the  divine  Spirit  affirms  both  without  any  shadovf 
of  inconsistency ;  he  first  considered  Israel  with  respect  to  God, 
whom  he  offended  by  his  ingratitude  for  his  mercies  and  won- 
deiful  acts  of  kindness,  and  Israel  deserved  the  cruel  wound  of 
the  nations  for  that  crime  of  ingratitude  and  rebellion  ;  therer 


i 


liii.  9.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO,  517 

fore  he  said,  And  for  the  rebellion  of  my  people  tvas  he  lOiundeiL 
He  next  considers  Israel  with  respect  to  the  nations,  suffering 
at  their  hands  the  horrible  cahxinities  and  sufferings  which  tliey 
made  him  undergo  when  under  their  power,  and  with  respect 
to  them  he  says  that  Israel  suffered  undeservedly,  for  In;  never 
deserved  their  contempt,  their  hatred,  and  the  continued  perse- 
cutions with  which  they  all  and  every  one  afflicted  him,  since 
Israel  never  dealt  falsely  or  violently  towards  them,  and  there 
was  never  deceit  in  his  mouth  ;  but  they  always  Lad  the  worst 
opinion  of  him  as  if  he  were  unworthy  of  all  confidence,  always 
enclosing  him  in  a  special  district,  separating  and  confining  him, 
branding  the  Israelites  in  their  attire  with  differences  from  that 
of  the  natives  and  of  all  other  nations,  and  all  that  through 
mistrust  and  a  hateful  supposition  that,  if  not  separated  and 
niarked  out  for  recognition,  they  would  perpetrate  atrocious 
crimes,  a  stupid  apprehension  of  powerful  communities  about  a 
weak,  helpless  worm,  with  no  other  means  of  living  among  men 
but  his  continuous  invocations  of  the  mercy  of  the  Lord  his 
God,  and  a  humble  submission  to  all  the  nations  of  the  earth. 
They  always  abhorred  him  because  he  remained  constant  to 
the  divine  law,  and  bore  him  mortal  hatred  for  his  obstinacy  in 
the  faith  which  he  inherited  from  his  forefathers,  to  whom  God 
commanded  it;  they  judged  him,  condemned  him,  and  often 
murdered  him  in  different  kingdoms  for  diabolical  superstitious 
which  their  malevolent  designs  attril)uted  to  him.  Such  was 
the  opinion  the  nations  formed  of  him,  and  from  it  followed  all 
the  torments  and  miseries  endured  by  Israel  in  his  captivity. 
The  prophet  contradicts  this  false  opinion,  affirming  that  although 
the  Lord  punished  Israel,  and  wounded  him  for  the  sins  which 
he  committed  against  his  divine  laws  and  sacred  precepts, 
wickedness  and  malice  were  the  sole  motives  of  the  nations  in 
executing  this  punishment,  Israel  being  with  regard  to  them 
quite  innocent  of  all  the  motives  and  pretexts  they  invented  in 
order  to  persecute  him ;  whereas  he  never  gave  them  any  occa- 
sion for  being  justly  provoked  to  inflict  punishment,  and  so  the 


518  ISAAC   OROBIO   DE   CASTllO.  [liii.  9. 

prophet  pays,  that  Israel  being  buried  amongst  the  nations  by 
divine  judgineut,  suffered  the  vexations,  injuries,  anJ  oppres- 
sions of  the  niijnrhty,  and  tliey  heaped  upon  his  head  charges  and 
crimes  wliioli  he  never  imagined,  with  the  object  of  destroying 
liim,  and  this  although  lie  did  11  )t  deal  falieJi/,  and  there  was  no 
deceit  in  his  mouth.  Hence  the  sohitiou  is  obtained  to  the  diffi- 
culty proposed,  namely,  in  considering  Israel  guilty  with  regard 
to  the  divine  justice,  but  innocent  with  regard  to  the  wicked- 
ness of  the  men  who  unjustly  persecuted  him. 

The  nations  lay  great  stress  upon  this  verse,  endeavouring 
to  prove  that  this  chapter  must  not  and  cannot  be  understood 
of  the  people  of  God,  but  of  some  person  who  is  sinless ;  as  it 
cannot  be  truly  affirmed  of  Israel  in  his  captivity  or  before  it, 
that  he  never  acted  falsely,  and  there  was  no  deceit  in  his 
mouth,  since  he  sinned  from  his  veiy  origin,  and  at  all  times  com- 
mitted every  kind  of  sin  which  attends  human  frailty ;  and  so 
fiir  from  Israel  being  able  to  deny  this  truth,  he  clearly  con- 
fesses it,  imploring  God's  mercy  for  his  crimes,  which  cast  him 
forth  into  captivity,  and  still  keeps  him  in  it;  but  if  the  wise 
men  of  the  nations  would  consult  the  Holy  Scriptures,  they 
would  find  a  very  clear  answer  to  their  aigument  without  any 
difficulty  being  left;  and  they  ought  to  find  no  difficulty  in  our 
own  exjjlanation,  since  long  before  David  said  the  same  thing 
and  with  the  same  form  of  words  as  Isaiah  uses  here,  David 
speaking  distinctly  of  Israel  scattered  and  ca])tive  among  the 
nations  in  Psalm  xliv,  where,  after  celebrating  the  mercy  which 
in  former  times  the  Lord  shewed  to  his  people,  he  describes  the 
miseries  to  which  he  abandoned  him  for  his  sins,  and  in  the 
sixteenth  and  following  verses  he  clearly  affirms  that  the  people, 
being  punished  by  God  through  the  instrumentality  of  the 
nations,  vindicates  itself,  saying,  that  it  had  not  dealt  falsely  in 
the  divine  covenant,  it  had  not  deviated  from  the  paths  of  right- 
eousness, nor  had  its  heart  declined  from  the  divine  worship. 
Then,  if  David  speaks  so,  cannot  the  same  truth  issue  from  the 
mouth  of  David  as  from  the  pen  of  Isaiah  ?     If  David  says  that 


lili.  9.]  ISAAC   OROBIO    DE    CASTRO;  519 

Isniel  did  not  deal  falsely  or  deceitfully  in  the  covenant,  will 
not  Isaiah  be  right  in  saying  that  there  was  no  falseness  ia 
Israel  nor  deceit  in  his  mouth  1  And  the  wise  men  of  the 
nations  do  not  dissent  from  this  truth  when  they  explain  this 
Psalm  xliv.  of  the  present  captivity  of  Israel  by  the  Romans, 
as  Nicolas  de  Lira  explains  it  in  his  commentary.  Still  it  ia 
necessary  to  know  in  what  sense  David  and  Isaiah  justify  the 
people  of  Israel ;  since  he  is  a  sinner  and  punished  by  God  for 
his  transgi'essions,  no  one  excuses  him  for  the  sins  that  usually 
follow  our  frailty,  and  the  inclinati<m  of  our  material  appetites ; 
indeed  these  sins  nevej"  led  the  nations  to  punish  and  ])ersecute 
Israel ;  they  do  not  despise  and  abominate  him  as  robber,  traitor, 
homicide,  or  for  any  other  similar  crime,  but  for  his  constant 
observance  of  the  divine  law,  which  in  their  hati'ed  they  style. 
Jewish  obstinacy,  because  he  always  scorned  their  divinities,  and 
because  he  holds  as  pi-ofane  what  they  venerate  as  divine.  So 
Pliny  says  (xxiii.  5),  '  The  Jews  are  a  perverse  nation,  and  re- 
markable for  their  contempt  of  the  gods;'  and  Tacitus  says, 
'  All  tiiat  other  nations  hold  divine,  they  count  profane.'  It  is 
for  this  reason  that  all  the  nations  raise  their  scourge  against 
Israel,  the  Moors,  Turks,  Persians,  Arabs,  and  other  nations,  and 
all  because  he  does  not  cease  to  observe,  as  far  as  time  and  place 
in  his  captivity  allow  it,  the  divine  Law  which  he  received  on 
Sinai  :  all  concur  in  saying  that  Israel  is  sacrilegious,  that  he 
falsifies  it,  that  it  is  not  jjerpetual,  that  it  is  now  abrogated  as 
useless,  obsolete,  and  deadly :  but  Israel  scorns  persuasions, 
dangers,  death,  and  contempt,  for  the  sake  of  obeying  and  ob- 
serving it,  because  it  is  perpetual  and  indestructible  in  spite  of  all 
human  violence.  The  nations  abominate  this  truth,  and  for  it  they 
abhor  and  persecute  Israel.  So  David  says  in  his  Psalm,  and 
of  this  he  complains  to  God  in  the  name  of  the  people,  that  the 
nations  destroy,  scorn,  and  even  murder  him,  for  his  having 
remained  constant  in  the  knowledge  and  true  worship  of  his 
Creator,  without  declining  to  the  paths  of  the  Gentiles,  or  fol- 
lowing their  intricate  windings ;  that  therefore  he  was  slaugh- 


520  ISAAC    OIIOBIO    DE    CASTllO.  [liii.  lo. 

tered  like  a  lamb;  he  does  not  deny  having  committed  other 
sins,  but  says  that  he  has  been  insulted  by  all  the  nations  simply 
for  fulloAving  the  divine  truth  ;  this  is  exactly  what  Isaiah  says 
in  this  verse,  that  tlie  peo[»le  was  persecuted  by  the  nations, 
because  lie  dealt  not  falsely,  and  there  was  no  deceit  in  his  mouth  : 
all  the  deceits  and  falsehoods  that  the  nations  imputed  to  him 
against  the  sacred  religion  which  he  professes  by  the  eternal 
command,  were  pretexts  of  the  malevolence  of  the  Gentiles  to 
ruin  him  and  blot  out  his  memory  ;  because  all  that  he  said,  all 
that  he  affirmed,  in  support  of  the  observance  of  his  religion, 
was  holy,  true,  pure,  and  derived  from  that  same  spring  from 
which  he  drank  in  Sinai ;  and  guided  by  its  light  fie  dealt  not 
falsely,  and  there  was  no  deceit  in  his  mouth,  as  the  prophet 
Bays  in  this  verse. 

^°  But  Adonai  was  pleased  to  bruise  him,  etc.  The  prophet 
answers  an  implied  question  which  the  preceding  verse  might 
suggest  to  the  mind ;  then,  if  Israel  is  innocent,  if  there  was 
no  deceit  in  his  mouth,  why  did  the  nations  seek  such  pretexts 
to  depreciate  and  destroy  him  1  How  can  it  be  consistent  to 
say  in  the  preceding  verse  that  Israel  suffered  his  wounds  for 
his  rebellion,  and  then  immediately  after  to  say  that  he  did 
not  deal  falsely,  and  there  was  no  deceit  in  his  mouth,  but  that 
the  will  of  God  was  pleased  to  punish  him,  whereas  the  righteous- 
ness of  divine  justice,  which  is  God's  goodness  itself,  does  not 
permit  that  there  shall  be  punishment  without  fault,  or  that 
innocence  should  suffer  1  And  if  in  his  righteous  judgments 
he  permits  it  for  some  good  end,  which  we  cannot  fathom,  is 
not  permitting  it  the  same  as  desiring  it  ?  But  the  prophet 
says  that  Adonai  was  pleased  to  bniise  him,  and  that  he  should 
suffer  punishment  from  the  nations,  notwithstandmg  that  he  did 
not  deal  falsely,  and  there  was  no  deceit  in  his  mouth.  But,  if 
the  words  of  the  prophet  are  properly  considered,  he  says  a  very 
different  thing  :  we  stated  before  that  Israel  is  innocent  with 
respect  to  the  nations,  because  he  never  acted  violently  to  them, 
for  the  Hebrew  word  which  we  translate  falsely   means  that. 


liii.  lo.]  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  521 

and  so  the  ClirisHan  doctors  interpret  it ;  the  people  never  in- 
jured thenv  and  always  suffered  meekly  their  injuries,  nor  did  he 
teach  them  any  deceitfid  doctrine,  which  was  what  they  imputed 
to  him,  but  the  infallible  truth  of  the  true  God  and  his  divine 
law,  and  therefore  they  were  unjust  in  afflicting  him  with  their 
continual  vexations ;  but  with  respect  to  God,  Israel  was  re- 
bellious and  guilty.  The  jn-ophet  says,  then,  that  although 
Israel  gave  no  occasion  to  the  nations  for  persecuting  him,  the 
divine  ^Majesty  being  offended  was  pleased  to  punish  him  and  make 
use  of  the  wickedness  of  the  nations  as  the  instrument  of  this 
punishment;  they  oppi'essed  him  unjustly,  and  the  Lord  in  con- 
formity with  his  justice  and  righteousness  was  pleased  that  they 
should  oppress  him.  David  says  the  same  in  Psalm  xliv,  alrendy 
quoted ;  after  having  said  that  Israel  did  not  fail  in  the  divine 
covenant,  that  his  heart  turned  not  back,  and  that  his  footsteps 
declined  not  from  the  ways  of  the  Lord  (which  is  what  Isaiah 
says,  He  dealt  not  falsely,  and  there  was  no  deceit  in  his  month), 
he  continues,  *  Why  didst  thou  bruise  us  in  the  place  of  serpents, 
and  cover  us  with  darkness  V  and  this  is  the  same  as  Isaiah  says, 
And  Adonai  was  pleased  to  bruise  hiui,  made  him  sick.  There 
can  be  no  more  evident  proof  that  David  and  Isaiah  speak  of 
the  same  subject,  namely,  Israel,  both  using  the  same  form, 
not  only  of  reasoning  but  even  of  expression,  and  saying 
that  Adonai  wished  to  bruise  him,  although  he  was  innocent 
of  what  the  nations  imputed  to  him.  //'  he  offer  his  soid  in 
atonement,  etc.  The  prophet  has  already  stated  the  reason  why 
God  wounded  Israel,  namely,  for  his  rebellion  and  wickedness ; 
and  then  he  gave  the  reason  why,  being  innocent  with  respect 
to  the  calumnies  of  the  nations,  he  delivered  him  into  their 
hands,  namely,  to  wound  and  persecute  him,  because  in  his 
righteous  judgment  he  was  pleased  that  it  should  be  so,  for  other- 
wise they  could  not  have  done  it ;  now  he  states  the  final  cause 
of  his  permitting  this,  of  this  apparent  abar'^onment  and  forget-, 
fulness  of  his  chosen  people,  that  it  was  not  to  destroy  and  make 
an  end  of  him,  as  the  nations  believe,  but  that  being  corrected  of 


532  Isaac  orobio  de  castr6.  [liii.  io« 

liis  faults  lie  mi^ht  return  into  the  i,n-acc  of  tlie  Lord  his  Giod, 
and  sceure  the  ■wonderful  favours  which  are  ])romised  in  this, 
verse  and  those  which  follow  as  far  as  the  end  of  the  chapter; 
therefore  he  says,  //  he  offer  his  sonl  in  at  mement  he  shall  see 
seed,  shall  proloiig  his  days,  and  the  will  of  Adonai  shall  pros2)er 
in  his  hand ;  that  is,  if  he  expose  his  life  to  dangers  in  atone- 
ment for  his  sins,  he  shall  see  seed,  etc.  God  commands  Israel 
in  his  divine  law  to  love  him  with  all  his  heart  and  with  all  his 
soul  and  with  all  his  substance,  which  is  to  love  the  Lord  more 
than  one's  own  soul,  and  what  is  more  than  living  in  such  a  way, 
that  out  of  love  to  him  man  should  not  hesitate  to  sacrifice  his 
soul,  his  life,  should  it  be  required,  for  the  glory  and  honour 
of  his  holy  name.  In  this  man's  highest  perfection  consists, — 
in  loving  his  Creator  more  than  his  own  existence,  his  own  life. 
On  this  love  obedience  to  the  divine  law  and  its  precepts  de- 
pends, for  if  man  l)ears  Gcd  all  the  love  he  owes  him,  he  will 
rather  die  than  disobey  him. 

•  The  prophet  then  says,  that  God  having  punished  Israel  for  his 
disobedience,  and  bruised  and  weakened  him  among  the  nations, 
if  he  will  ofler  his  soul  in  atonement  for  his  sins,  if  he  will 
return  to  love  him  wuth  all  his  heart  and  with  all  his  soul, 
despising  his  own  soul,  which  is  his  own  life,  to  love  and  obey 
liim,  des])ising  for  his  glory  and  honour  all  the  dangers  and 
injuries  from  the  nations,  he  will  be  favoured  of  God,  he  will 
return  into  the  divine  favour  as  before,  and  God  will  fulfil  to 
him  the  promise  which  he  gave  in  Deuteronomy  (chap,  xxx), 
'And  thou  shalt  return  and  ol)cy  the  voice  of  Adonai,  and  do  all 
his  coiumandinents  which  I  command  thee  this  day;  for  Adonai 
Avill  again  rejoice  over  thee  for  good,  as  he  rejoiced  over  thy 
fatheis,'  which  is  the  same  as  what  the  prophet  says.  If  he  give 
his  sold  in  atonement  he  shall  see  seed.  He  says,  //'  he  (jive 
in  atonement,  which  would  seem  to  be  spoken  conditionally  and 
with  doubtlulnes-s, — if  Israel  will  do  so,  or  do  the  contrary,  and 
that  he  promises  him  the  consequent  favours  only  on  a  con- 
dition.    But  this  is  -DO  condition  which  kaves  the  consequence 


i 


liii.  lo.]  ISAAC   OEOBIO    DE   CASTRO.  523 

;Uncertain,  but  a  style  of  Holy  Scrii)ture,  even  in  m.atters  that 
>are  infallibly  to  be,  and  this  too  in  the  case  of  acts  depending 
on  man's  fi'ee  will.  For  although  our  Lord  in  his  absolute 
wisdom  knows  what  man  will  do  of  his  free  accord,  and  how 
his  own  will  will  incline  him,  still  he  does  not  oblige  or  force 
him,  nor  is  God's  knowledge  the  cause  of  wh:it  man  chooses, 
although  he  cannot  fail  to  choose  what  the  Lord  already  knows, 
because  his  wisdom  cannot  err.  Therefore,  although  he  knows 
what  man  will  do,  still  he  says,  if  thou  do  so  and  so ;  but  he 
cannot  fail  or  omit  to  do  so.  This  is  clearly  shewn  in  Deutero- 
nomy (xxx.  8),  where  it  is  said  absolutely  that  Israel  will  turn 
from  his  iniquity,  '  And  thou  shalt  return  and  hear  the  voice  of 
Adonai ;'  and  at  verse  ii  he  speaks  conditionally,  ' /f  thou  turn 
unto  Adonai  thy  God  with  all  thine  heart,  with  all  thy  soul;' 
but  this  condition  does  not  oppose  the  absolute  promise  whicTi 
he  had  already  made,  it  only  shews  that  Israel  using  his  free 
will  will  return  to  Adonai  his  God;  for  unless  it  were  so, 
there  would  be  no  merit  in  I'eturning.  Just  in  the  same  way 
the  prophet  says  here,  that  if  Israel  will  offer  his  life  for  his 
sins  or  as  an  atonement  for  them,  which  means,  Israel,  by  offering 
his  life  for  his  guilt,  despising  the  dangers  he  met  among  the 
nations,  and  remaining  constant  to  the  divine  law,  will  ol)tain 
the  following  rewards, — he  ivill  see  seed,  the  Lord  will  fulfil  the 
blessing  which  he  promised  in  Deuteronomy  (xxx.  5),  '  I  will 
multiply  thee  above  thy  fathers  ; '  this  multiplication  Isaiah  ex- 
presses by  will  see  seed,  that  is,  offspring  and  large  posterity. 
He  says  the  same  thing  in  Ixi.  9,  'And  their  seed  shall  be  known 
among  the  nations,  and  their  offsjjving  among  the  peoples;  all 
that  see  them  shall  acknowledge  them,  that  they  are  the  seed 
which  Adonai  hatb  blessed.'  In  this  excellent  way  he  says  that 
Israel,  if  he  offers  his  soul  in  atonement,  will  see  the  blosing 
which  God  gave  to  Abraham  (Gen.  xiii.  16),  and  to  Hagar,  the 
angel  blessing  Ishmael  (Gen.  xvi.  10).  He  makes  the  same  pro- 
mise through  Ezekiel  (xxxvi.  37),  saying,  'I  will  increase  them 
.with  men  like  a  flock.'  ..  Isaiah,  says  the  people   will    obtain 


524  ISAAC    OROBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [liii.  lO. 

this  bleisiiig  «s  promised  in  the  divine  law,  that  he  will  be 
a  numerous  people,  that  he  will  multiply  and  his  descendants 
will  he  innumerahle,  that  he  will  see  seed  and  prolong  his  days. 
He  adds  another  promise — that  he  will  prolong  the  days  of  his 
life,  that  his  happiness  will  be  permanent,  that  he  will  experience 
no  more  ruin,  diminution,  or  eajjtivity,  nor  will  his  progeny,  as 
in  past  redemptions,  be  such  as  to  require  a  repetition  of  s'milar 
sufferings  among  the  nations,  nor  will  it  commit  f-ins  compel- 
ling the  anger  of  the  Lord  to  inflict  j)unishments.  This  duration 
and  perpetuity  f»f  life  in  the  land  of  their  fathers  is  a  reward 
which  God  offered  in  the  Law  for  its  observance,  as  here  in 
Isaiah  for  his  repentance  and  return  to  the  divine  mercy  :  there- 
fore he  says,  He  will  sae  seed,  and  jprjlong  Jiis  days.  Isaiah 
repeats  the  game  blessing  at  Ixv.  20,  22  ;  and  at  Ixvi.  22  he  extols 
the  eternal  duration  of  Israel,  saying,  '  As  the  new  heavens  and 
the  new  earth  Avhich  I  will  make  shall  remain  before  me,  f-aith 
Adonai,  so  shall  your  seed  and  your  name  remain.'  Isaiah  keeps 
this  thought  in  the  fifty-third  chapter,  and  makes  use  of  the  same 
phrase,  promising  as  a  blessing  to  redeemed  Israel  that  he  will 
lengthen  his  days.  And  the  vnll  of  Adonai  vnll  i^rosj^er  in  his 
hand.  The  prophet  concludes  the  veise  by  saving  that  when 
the  people  have  suffered  the  troubles  of  the  captivity,  and  borne 
them,  keeping  constant  to  the  divine  law,  and  return  in  repent- 
ance to  the  divine  grace,  as  of  old,  the  will  of  Adonai  will  be  in 
every  respect  accomplished,  which  always  was  tliat  Israel  should 
turn  from  his  sins,  that  he  should  offer  his  soul  in  atonement, 
in  order  to  welcome  him  and  preserve  him  as  his  first-born  son, 
to  exalt  him  among  all  the  nations,  to  communicate  in  his  love 
his  favours  in  the  land  which  he  gave  to  his  forefathers  as  a 
perpetual  inheritance,  all  which  Israel  had  prevented  by  his 
sins,  rendering  himself  ignorant  of  that  will  of  God,  being  un- 
mindful of  his  favours,  as  it  was  declared  in  Deuteronomy  (xxxii. 
28,  29),  in  the  wonderful  song  of  Closes.  Such  was  and  is  the 
will  of  God,  and  this  will  be  realised,  and  will  prosper  in  Israel ; 
for  ^s  the  power  of  losing  himself  was  in  his  own  hand,  so  will 


liii.  ii]  ISAAC  OROBro  de  castro.  525 

be  that  of  afterwards  returning,  which  is  the  will  of  God,  there- 
fore it  is  said,  And  the  will  of  Adonui  shall  jnosper  in  his  hand; 
and  so  it  was  promised  through  the  same  Isaiah  (Iv.  ii),  'It 
shall  accomplish  that  which  I  please,  and  it  shall  prosper  in  the 
thing  whereto  I  sent  it.' 

'^  The  prophet  continues  describing  the  rewards  Israel  will 
receive  after  the  troubles  of  his  captivity,  and  besides  his  multi- 
plication and  the  perpetual  happiness  of  his  spiritual  and  tem- 
poral condition,  he  says  in  this  verse  that  through  the  affliction 
of  his  soul  he  will  see  signs  and  fruits  of  the  redemption  of 
Israel,  in  accordance  with  the  whole  of  Holy  Scripture,  that  is, 
that  he  will  see  what  for  so  many  centuries  he  had  wished  to 
see ;  lae  will  see  his  wonderful  redem^^tion,  his  kingdom  re- 
established and  exalted  above  all  the  other  kingdoms,  he  will 
sie  his  King,  a  son  of  David,  on  his  throne,  full  of  grace  and 
divine  sjjirit,  his  holy  temple  rebuilt,  his  priests  and  Levites  purely 
performing  the  sacrifices  ;  and  in  addition  to  this,  he  will  see 
that  in  which  the  grandeur  of  his  redemption  principally  con- 
sists, the  affluence  of  grace  and  holiness,  which,  like  full  rivers, 
will  be  poured  over  all  the  children  of  the  people,  they  circum- 
cising the  hearts  of  themselves,  of  their  offspring,  and  uniformly 
loving  the  Lord  their  Grod  with  all  their  heart  and  with  all 
their  soul ;  he  will  see  in  all  the  nations  of  the  universe  a 
humble  submission  to  their  Creator,  and  will  see  them  coming 
from  all  parts  to  Jerusalem  in  the  name  of  Adonai,  and  the 
house  of  Jacob  and  Judah  from  the  north  to  the  land,  the  in- 
heritance of  their  fathers  ;  he  will  also  see  the  divine  secrets, 
enjo}ing  as  before  the  prophetic  inspiration,  for  so  many  yeara 
denied  to  Israel,  and  this  is  properly  called  seeing  in  Holy 
Scripture  (Joel  iii.  i)  ;  the  Lord  had  punished  them  by  de- 
priving them  of  the  prophetic  vision,  and  promises  to  restore  it 
at  the  restoration.  All  this  is  expressed  by  the  prophet  in  a 
single  word,  since  it  had  all  been  said  by  the  Lord  in  the  Law 
and  in  the  prophets  in  many  parts  and  with  perfect  clearness, 
depicting  the  future  redemption ;  and  unless  it  happens  so,  it 


526  ISAAC    OBOfilO   DE    CASTRO.  [liil.  Hi 

is  useless  to  try  to  persuade  Israel  that  he  is  already  redeemed, 
neither  ought  he  to  believe  it,  and  the  nations  have  no  ground 
to  prove  that  it  is  so ;  and  the  fact  that  Israel  does  n- 1  see 
what  the  Lord  says  he  shall  see  in  the  ]ia]>py  time  of  his  rcstora-' 
tion  is  a  sufficient  answer  to  all  the  ariijuinents  and  subtleties  of 
our  opponents.  And  he  will  he  Sali.-Jinl ;  that  is,  ho  will  have 
abundance  of  all  spiritual  and  toniporal  wealth,  aud  lie  will  u^e 
them  so  conformaljly  with  right  reason  and  the  divine  2)rccopts, 
that  they  will  not  cause  in  him  pride  or  jealousy,  or  envy  or 
avarice,  vices  which  belong  to  those  who,  however  nnuh  they 
possess,  are  always  longing  for  more,  being  never  satisfied, 
finding  no  end  to  their  insatiable  desires  ;  but  Israel  w^ill  be 
satisfied,  and  will  have  nothing  to  desire,  and  will  be  free  from 
that  vice  Avhicli  accompanies  the  possession  of  material  wealth  ', 
for  if  Israel  in  former  times  waxed  fat  and  kicked  through  the 
possession  of  these  good  things,  now  he  will  use  them  with  such 
moderation  and  temj^erance  that  material  luxury  will  not  divert 
him  from  holiness  and  justice ;  he  will  nut  proudly  rebel,  but  he 
will  eat  and  be  satisfied,  and  will  bless  Adonai  his  God;  this  is 
what  Isaiah  says,  lie  shall  see  and  be  satisfied.  With  his  ivisdom 
my  righteous  servant  shall  justify  many.  The  Lord  again  gives 
Israel  the  title  of  his  servant,  as  he  did  in  the  beginning;  for  if 
in  all  this  chapter  he  represented  him  as  the  servant  of  all  the 
nations,  amongst  which  he  suffered  the  troubles  and  miseries 
alluded  to,  now  being  freed  from  all  he  deserves  to  be  the 
servant  of  the  Loi'd  his  God  alone,  who  redeemed  him  from 
such  cruel  chains,  for  there  will  be  no  one  to  rule  over  him, 
nor  will  he  acknowledge  any  other  authority  than  that  of  the 
Lord,  whose  power  could  now  draw  him  out  of  the  clutches 
of  the  Gentiles,  as  it  did  formerly  out  of  Egypt  The  prophet 
says  that  the  servant  of  the  Lord,  that  is,  Israel  now  justified, 
will  with  his  wisdom  justify  many,  all  of  the  Gentiles  who  wish 
to  avail  themselves  of  his  wisdom  and  teaching,  and  make  them- 
telves^  capal)le  of  receiving  it;  for  as  God  is  in  his  very  nature 
«upremely.good,he  communicates  bis  goodness  to  his  creatures, 


liii.   it.l  ISAAC    OKOBIO    OE    CASTRO,  627. 

when  they  are  capable  of  receiving  it ;  there  is  no  work  of  his 
that  is  not  full  of  goodnes-  ;  the  redemption  of  Israel  is  the 
work  of  God  alone,  and  thus  it  is  necessarily  good  and  coni-r 
municable  to  all  to  whom  it  is  possible  to  communicate  his 
goodness.  Many  impious  Gentiles  will  perish  at  that  time  in 
the  blindness  of  their  false  sects,  as  all  the  prophets  write,  and 
particularly^  Ezekiel  and  Zechariah,  and  many  will  enjoy  the 
fruits  of  the  redem23tion  with  Israel,  ai'oused  by  the  miracles 
and  wondei-s  which  they  will  see  performed  in  favour  of  this 
redeemed  people  ;  these  will  join  him  humbly,  and  will  surrender 
not  only  their  persons  in  obedience  as  subjects,  but  also  their 
souls,  their  wills  to  the  true  doctrine,  faithfully  asking  them 
from  those  whom  they  will  now  acknowledge  as  taught  by  God, 
as  his  first-born  son,  whose  wisdom  will  give  to  the  pious  of 
the  nations  the  true  and  pure  tidings  of  their  Creator,  and  the 
worship  with  which  the}-  ought  to  serve  him,  forgetting  the  false 
ones  which  wickedness  had  invented,  and  ignorance  preserved. 
Redeemed  Israel  will  with  his  wisdom  remove  this  ignorance, 
that  the  nations  may  be  justified,  and  being  sanctified  and  united 
with  Israel  all  nations  may  praise  the  Lord  and  all  may  come  to 
drink  of  this  wisdom,  as  Isaiah  said  before  at  ii.  3,  '  And  many 
people  shall  go  and  say,  Come  ye,  and  let  us  go  up  to  the  moun- 
tain of  the  Lord,'  etc.;  and  through  Jeremiah  (xvi.  19)  he  says 
that  all  the  nations  will  come  to  Israel,  confessing  the  ignorance 
in  which  they  lived,  and  asking  for  the  light  of  his  true  wisdom 
for  their  salvation;  and  similarly  by  Zeciiariah  (viii.  23),  'And 
ten  men  shall  take  hold  of  the  skirt  of  him  that  is  a  Jew,  saying, 
AVe  will  go  with  you,  for  we  have  heard  that  God  is  with  you.' 
Finally,  Israel  will  l)e  God's  instrument  in  bringing  back  the  na- 
tions to  the  knowledge  of  him  through  the  wisdom  of  the  divine 
law,  which  Avill  abound  in  all  the  people,  of  which  ^Moses  said, 
'This  is  your  wisdom,  this  is  your  understanduig;'  and  thus 
Isaiah  confirms  him  by  saying,  And  my  righteous  servant  will 
justifi/  many  icith  his  wisdom.  And  he  ivill  hear  their  iniquity ; 
Israel  .will  bear  patiently  the  iniquity  of  the  nations.     But  it 


528  ISAAC    OROBIO    DK    CASTKO.  [liii,  it. 

would  seem  that  Israel  being  already  in  tliis  happy  condition, 
described  by  the  i)ropbet  has  nothing  more  to  suffer,  tiie  iniquity 
of  the  nations  can  no  longer  hurt  him,  as  tliey  are  supposed  to 
be  now  vanquished  and  Israel  to  be  redeemed,  exalted,  ancE 
raised  very  high;  nevertheless,  having  said  so  so  many  times  in 
this  chapter,  he  now  repeats  it,  but  with  a  different  purjiose  , 
before  the  nations  were  accused  of  the  crimes  wliich  they  com- 
mitted against  captive  Israel,  but  now  the  piophet  celebrates- 
the  benevolence  of  Israel  after  his  liberation ;  for  he  was 
obliged  to  suffer  the  tntubles  of  his  captivity,  having  to  perse- 
Tcre  in  the  sacred  laws  ;  but  that  Israel,  now  that  he  is  glorious, 
favoured  by  God  and  liberated,  should  repay  the  greatest  injuries 
with  the  greatest  kindness  is  a  thing  worthy  of  being  celebrated! 
by  the  prophet.  It  is  for  this  reason  that  he  calls  him  righteous 
servant,  for  it  was  only  through  being  righteous  that  he  could 
act  so  righteously  as  not  only  not  to  seek  revenge  for  his  in- 
juries, but  to  solicit  the  salvation  of  those  who  oppressed  him  ; 
they  erred  in  seeking  his  ruin,  and  he  with  his  teaching  and 
wisdom  will  seek  to  remove  their  errors;  they  made  Iiim  wander 
through  painful  paths,  and  he  with  his  wisdoni  will  guide  them 
alung  the  path  of  truth  to  the  grace  of  their  Creator,  which 
will  be  the  greatest  benefit  which  the  nations  ever  experienced;. 
Israel  will  not  be  intolerant,  or  cherish  the  remembrance  of 
the  crimes  they  perpetrated  on  him  ;  on  the  contrary,  with  the 
greatest  fornivcness  he  will  seek  a  remedy  for  them,  by  bearing 
them  till  they  obtain  the  divine  mercy;  and  as  the  priest  bore 
the  sins  of  the  people  to  obtain  pardon  for  them,  so  Israel  will 
bear  the  guilt  of  the  nations,  fulfilling  what  the  Lord  says,  'And 
ye  shall  be  named  the  priests  of  Adonai'  (Is.  Ixi.  6),  'And  ye 
shall  1)6  unto  me  a  kingdom  of  priests'  (Exod.  xix.  6);  and 
thus  Isaiah  says  in  this  verse,  And  he  ivill  bear  their  guilt. 

"^  The  prophet  concludes  this  discourse  by  recapitulating  all 
that  he  has  said  in  the  preceding  verses ;  he  considers  the  end 
of  this  battle  which  Israel  in  his  captivity  had  to  fight  with  the 
nations,  resisting  with  invincible  patience  the  powerful  attacks 


liii.  12.]  ISAAC   OROBIO    DE   CASTRO.  529 

they  made  both  against  his  spiritual  nature  (endeavouring  to 
convert  him  to  their  various  sects)  and  against  his  body  by 
tlieir  cruel  punishments,  severity,  and  butchery,  all  which  Israel, 
keeping  true,  courageously  resisted,  entrenched  behind  the  forti- 
fications of  the  divine  law,  which  alone  constituted  his  defence 
and  gave  him  the  glorious  victory  over  all  the  nations  of  the 
universe  ;  then  the  prophet  says.  The  triumph  of  this  victory  I 
will  make  him  share  with  many,  I  will  give  or  apportion  him 
the  possession  of  many  nations  as  spoils  gained  in  the  war ;  the 
Lord  will  fulfil  what  he  said  through  Isaiah,  he  Avill  possess 
those  who  possessed  him,  and  will  make  subject  those  who  had 
made  him  subject,  he  will  employ  as  slaves  the  surrendered  nations, 
and  the  nation  that  shall  withstand  him  shall  be  destroyed,  as 
the  same  Isaiah  (Ix.  12)  says,  '  For  the  nation  that  will  not  serve 
thee  shall  perish,  and  the  nations  shall  be  utterly  wasted,'  etc. 
The  Lord  will  apportion  to  him  the  riches  of  the  nations  as 
spoils ;  as  before  by  divine  decree  he  spoiled  Egypt  of  its  riches, 
so  he  will  do  to  all  the  nations,  and  so  the  Lord  promised  bim 
through  Isaiah  (Ixi.  6),  in  order  that  the  sei'vant  of  Grod  may 
thus  be  elevated,  exalted,  and  raised  high  above  all  the  nations, 
not  only  in  spiritual  wealth,  in  which  the  perfection  of  the  soul 
consists,  but  also  in  the  temporal  wealth  which  satisfies  the 
wants  of  the  body  within  the  limits  which  reason,  directed  by 
the  divine  precepts,  permits.  And  he  shall  divide  the  sjioil  loith 
the  strong.  He  says  that  he  will  divide  these  spoils,  which  the 
Lord  will  give  to  Israel,  among  the  strong  and  valiant  children 
of  the  people  who  bravely  fought  in  their  afflictions,  and  faithful 
to  the  Lord  their  God  persevered  till  they  gained  the  victory, 
without  being  vanquished  either  by  fear  or  a  kind  of  vanity 
(conversion)  of  the  false  Israelites,  imposed  upon  the  nations, 
which  however  they  never  believed  and  in  no  way  esteemed; 
and  with  those  who  were  brave  he  will  divide  the  spoils ;  and 
he  gives  the  reason  why  these  are  to  enjoy  the  fruit,  the  spoils 
of  this  wonderful  victory,  because  he  gave  his  soid  up  to  death, 
and  was  reckoned  among  the  rebels,  which  means,  because  he 

M  m 


530  ISAAC   OllOBIO    DE    CASTRO.  [liii.  J2. 

exposed  his  life  to  dangers  for  the  sake  of  the  divine  law, 
and  made  no  account  of  the  opinion  of  the  nations,  or  of 
being  held  by  them  as  a  vile,  obstinate,  and  pertinacious  Jew, 
the  reproach  which  all  the  nations  throw  in  the  face  of  Israel, 
by  whom  he  is  considered  a  criminal,  and  as  such  I'eckoned 
among  the  most  sacrilegious  criminals,  being  charged  with  high 
treason  against  God.  But  those  who  bore  this  opprobrium, 
these  insults,  with  a  brave  spirit,  with  strength  of  mind,  des- 
pising life,  if  required,  and  the  honours  of  the  Gentiles,  which 
are  of  no  value,  if  they  did  not  conceal  themselves,  timid  and 
wretched,  in  order  not  to  be  knoAvn  and  reckoned  among  the 
transgressors  of  Israel ;  if  they  felt  greater  esteem  for  the 
divine  law,  suffering  contempt,  than  for  the  hostile  opinion  of 
the  Gentiles,  then  because  he  offered  his  soul  to  death  and 
was  reckoned  ivith  the  transgressors,  because  he  bare  the  sins 
of  many  Avho  exerted  themselves  to  injure  him,  resisting  only 
with  patience  their  malevolence  and  tyranny,  he  will  enter  into 
the  share  of  many,  and  with  the  powerful  of  Israel  will 
divide  the  spoils  of  the  nations  who  persecuted  him.  And 
for  the  rebellious  he  ivill  intercede.  Finally,  when  the  servant 
of  God  is  exalted,  Israel  elevated  and  raised  very  high,  victo- 
rious over  all  the  nations,  dividing  them  under  his  own  sway, 
and  enjoying  the  gpoils  of  victory,  this  greatness  in  tempo- 
ral wealth  will  be  no  obstacle  to  the  perfection  of  his  spiri- 
tual life,  in  which  the  most  valuable  greatness  consists,  the 
summit  of  all  happiness  before  reaching  the  celestial  glory  of 
the  next  world ;  for  their  hearts  being  circumcised,  those  of 
stone  removed  and  those  of  flesh  put  in  their  place,  Israel  will 
preserve  a  perpetual  union  with  his  Creator ;  he  will  be  his 
God,  and  Israel  his  people,  and  as  such  always  worthy  to 
share  in  his  divine  favours,  which  he  will  liberally  and  lov- 
ingly bestow  on  him;  one  of  which  will  be  that  Israel  will 
no  sooner  pray  than  he  will  be  heard  and  his  prayer  accepted, 
as  it  is  promised  by  the  same  prophet  (Ixv.  24),  'And  it 
shall  come  to  pass  that  before  they  call  I  will  answer,  and  while 


liii.  12.]  ISAAC   OROBTO    DE    CASTRO.  531 

they  are  yet  speaking  I  will  hear ;'  for  Israel  to  call  will  be  the 
same  as  to  be  answered  by  God ;  he  will  be  praying,  and  at  the 
same  time  he  Avill  experience  the  fulfilment  of  his  prayer;  his 
intercession  will  avail  that  the  divine  justice  may  pitifully  par- 
don the  nations  their  abominable  sins,  even  those  they  com- 
mitted against  Israel,  while  innocent  of  all  the  falseness  and 
deceit  they  charged  him  with,  since  he  did  not  act  falsely  to 
them  and  there  was  no  deceit  in  his  mouth ;  for  Israel,  full 
of  the  love  of  God  and  his  divine  Spirit,  will  pray  for  the  re- 
bellious, will  be  the  mediator  of  peace  between  the  Lord  and 
the  nations,  praying  for  them,  not  with  an  ineffectual  prayer, 
but  one  so  effectual  that  his  entreaties  will  always  have  a  happy 
result  in  mankind  being  benefited ;  and  then  the  nations  will 
make  this  si^ontaneous  confession  of  their  mistake  and  the  in- 
justice with  which  they  treated  Israel,  which  Isaiah  narrates  in 
this  chaptei',  and  what  the  Lord  had  said  in  the  song  of  Moses 
will  be  fulfilled,  'Sing,  ye  nations,  of  his  people,  for  he  will 
avenge  the  blood  of  his  servants,  and  will  render  vengeance  to 
his  adversaries,  and  will  pardon  the  earth  for  his  people '  (Deut. 
xxxii.  43). 


M  m  2 


D.     JACOB   IBN   AMRAM. 

NoN  obstat  tertio  principalitcr  Isai.  cap.  liii.  vers.  4,  ibi : 
Langores  nostros  ipse  tulit,  etc.,  vers.  7,  secundum  versionem 
Latinam,  ibi :  Ohlatus  est,  quia  ipse  voluit,  et  vers.  8, 
secundum  eandem  Latinam,  ibi :  Propter  scelus  jyopuU  met 
percussi  cum,  etc.,  quae  omnia  videntur  verificari  in  Jesu 
Messia  et  Deo  Christianorum  a  Judaeis  facto  occidi,  et  non 
in  alio. 

Caeterum  immerito.  Imprimis,  quia  verba  ilia  quia  ipse 
voluit  sunt  temere  supposita :  quamvis  vero  sensui,  quern 
ad  praeoppositum  caput  liii.  praestamus,  non  officiant.  Eis- 
demque  supposititiis  verbis  refragatur  Matth.  cap.  xxvi. 
vers.  39,  Marc.  cap.  xiv.  vers.  ^6,  Luc.  cap.  xxii.  vers.  42. 

Deindc,  ilia  percussi  eum  sunt  ctiam  iniquissime  traducta. 
Nam  Veritas  Hebr.  habet  plaga  eis,  seu  percussi  eos,  ex 
verbo  lamo  in  plurali.  Undo  constat,  non  loqui  de  uno,  et 
multo  minus  de  Jesu. 

Praeterea,  pro  Christianis  nullatenus  facit.  Prime,  quia 
de  tempore  occisionis  nihil  ibidem  dicitur,  ut  debeat  prae- 
cise  intelligi  de  Jesu  Christianorum  occiso ;  si  quando  ilium, 
qui  Judaeis  promissus  est  Mcssias  Davidicus  occidi  oporteret ; 
quod  falsum  est,  ut  patebit  inferius.  Item  et  percussio  de 
multis  aliis  intelligi  potest,  qui  se  Messiam  simulabant. 

llursus,  si  pro  Christianis  loquerctur,  dicerc  debebat 
propter  scelus  pojmli  mei  ijjse  j^ojmIus  Judaicus  percussit 


Hi,  liii.]  JACOB    IBN    A.MRAM.  533 

eum.  Ast  secundum  quamlibet  literam,  Deus  sibi  tribuit 
actum  percuticndi ;  solamque  causam  applicat  populo  Ju- 
daico.  Item  et  percussus  non  est  unus,  sed  plures,  ut  patet 
ibi :  Propter  scelus  populi  mei  percussi  ego  Deus  eos,  etc. 

Denique  convincuntur  ex  vers,  i,  ibi:  Si  posuerit  pro 
peccato  animam  suatn,  videhit  semen,  jirolonf/ahit  dies,  etc. 
Tum  quia  Deus  aperte  ibidem  loquitur  de  puro  homine, 
et  humanis  ac  temporalibus  praemiis  eidem  conferendis : 
Christiani  vero  intelligunt  omnia  spiritualiter  (ut  est  ipsorura 
solitum  effugium)  et  de  praemiis  non  ipsi  Messiae  (quia  Deum 
esse  putant)  dandis,  sed  hominibus^  inquiunt,  ab  eo  salvatis. 
Tum  quia,  dum  conditionaliter  loquitur  ibi :  Si  posuerit,  etc., 
clare  ostendit,  se  loqui  de  puro  homine,  cujus  libero  arbitrio 
Deus  relinquit  opera  meritoria. 

Quapropter  dicendum  est,  Isaiara  intelligi  de  populo 
Israel  in  novissimo  dierum,  ut  nunc  est,  et  jam  antea  fuit 
in  omni  genere  afflictionum.  Loquitur  enim  de  uno,  qui 
plurium  vicem  gerit,  ut  est  populus  Israel  ex  Deut.  cap.  iv. 
a  princip.,  et  cap.  v.  a  princip.,  et  cap.  vi.  vers.  4,  et  passim; 
de  quo  etiam  promiscue  pluraliter  loquitur.  Et  idcirco  dicit : 
Propter  scelus  pojndi  mei  Judaici,  qui  multifariam  illuc 
usque  peccaverat,  percussi  eos,  id  est,  eundcm  populum 
Judaicum  successive  venientem  ;  quia  nempe,  novissimo 
praesertim  tempore,  erit  captivus,  dispersus,  afflictusj  angus- 
tiatus,  exactus,  et  percussus.  Quod  etiam  clare  depre- 
hendetur  ex  praecedenti  cap.  lii.  et  cap.  liv.  sequenti 
ejusdem  Isaiae. 

'Nee  oberit  dicere,  quod  videtur  inconveniens,  ut  idem 
populus  propter  scelus  ejusdem  populi  a  Deo  percussus 
dicatur  :  cum  immo  in  proposito  a  prophetis  dici  soleat, 
'Patres    nostri    comederunt    uvam    acerbam,    et    denies 


534  JACOB  IBN  AMRAM.  [Hi,  liii. 

nostri  obstupuerunt,"  vel  '  Patres  nostri  peccaverunt, 
et  non  sunt^  ct  nos  pro  cis  patimur,'  Jcrcm.  cap.  xxxi. 
vers.  26,  et  in  Lament,  cap.  ult.,  Ezechiol  cap.  xviii.  a 
princip.,  quia  sumitur  idem  populus  pro  cli verso  temporcr 
Haec  sufficiebant,  ut  Christiani  destituerentur  inani  funda- 
mento  ex  pracopposito  cap.  liii.  Isaiae. 

Verum,  quia  tcxtus  iste  singularis  est,  et  plusquam  obscu- 
rus,  utpote  propheticus  super  omnibus  angustiis,  et  miseriis, 
quas  ubique  locorum  Israel  passus  est,  patitur,  et  perpes- 
surus  est,  in  hoc  longo  exilio  et  dispersione  inter  gentes ; 
quarum  etiam  tyrannidem  versus  Israel  praedicit,  et  tandem 
ejusdem  Israel  venturam  felicitatem :  operae  pretium  duxi- 
mus  in  eo  tantisper  immorari,  eo  potissimum,  ut  evidentius 
convincatur  error  gentium,  quae  ad  instar  solertis  piscatoris 
Solent  in  turbidum  flumen  rete  jacere,  ut  aliquid  videantur 
expiscari.  Quae  ut  methodice  expediantur,  nota  istud  cap. 
liii.  connecti  praecedenti  (ut  statim  patefiet)  in  quo  pro- 
pheta  praedicit  futuram  gloriara  Sion  et  Jerusalem,  ut  patet 
in  princip.  ibi :  '  Quia  non  adiiciet  ultra,  ut  pcrtransiat  per  te 
incircumcisus  et  immundus.'  Quod  adhuc  implctum  non  est, 
ut  evidens  fit  ex  frequenti  incircumcisorum  et  immundorum 
adventu  et  sede.  Assentit  proplieta  Nalium  cap.  i.  in  fin., 
Joel  cap.  ult.  vers.  17:'  Excutere  de  pulvcrc,  consurge, 
sede  Jerusalem,  solve  vincula  colli  tui  captiva  filia  Sion: 
quia  haec  dicit  Dominus,  gratis  venundati  estis,  et  sine 
argento  redimemini,  etc'  Praedicit  quoque  redcmptionem 
et  reversioncm  Israel  a  vers.  9  et  vers.  12,  ibi :  '  Et  congre- 
gabit  vos  Deus  Israel,  etc.;'  et  tandem  subnectitur vers.  13 
qucm  sequitur  dictum  cap.  liii,  in  quibus  sunt  innumera  vitia 
vcrsionis  Latinae  Jeronymi ;  partim  forsan  ex  ignorantia 
sacri  idiomatis,  partim  ex  malitia  ut  videbitis. 


lii)  liii.]  JACOB  ibn  amram.  535 

Eapropter  praemittemus  seriem  vcrborum  prophetac  juxta 
veritatcm  Ilcb.  (ex  quo  obiter  error  aut  falsitas  Latinae 
versionis  coUigetur)  postea  interpretamenta  adhibebimus, 
quae  verosimiliora  videbuntur  ad  mentem  Isaiae. 

Inquit  itaque  in  praecedenti  cap.  lii.  a  vers.  13  :  Ecce  in- 
telliget  servus  mens,  exaltabitur,  et  elevahitur,  et  suhlbnis 
erit  valde.  Sicut  ohstupuere  super  te  multi,  sic  corriqitus 
de  vivo  aspectus  ejus,  et  forma  ejus  de  filiis  hominum : 
sic — non  iste,  ut  in  Latina — asperget  gentes  multas,  vel 
faciet  loqui  gentes  multas :  super  eum  continehunt  Meges  os 
suiim/  quia  quod  nonfuit  narratwn  illis  viderunt,  et  quod 
non  audierunt  intellexerunt. — Succedit  praeoppositum  cap. 
liii :  Quis  credidit  auditui  nostro  ?  et  brachium  Domini 
super  quo — non  cui,  ut  in  Latina — revelatum  est  ? 
Ascendet  sicut  virgultum  coram  eo,  et  radix  de  terra 
sicca :  non  forma  ei,  neqiie  decor ;  et  vidimus,  et  non 
aspectus,  et  desiderabimus — non  desideravimus,  ut  in 
Latina — eum,  despectum,  et  deminutum  hominum — non 
novissimum — virum  dolorum,  et  scientem  infirmitatem,  et 
abscondentem — non  absconditus — vultum  a  nobis,  vel  etiam 
a  se,  despectum,  et  non  repidavimus  eum.  Vero  langores 
nostros  ipse  tulit,  et  dolores  nostros  portavit :  et  nos 
aestimavimus  eum  plagatum,  percussum  a  Domino,  et 
afflictum.  Et  ipse  dolorosus  propter  iniquitates  nostras, 
attritus  p)^'opter  scelera  nostra :  disciplina  pads  nostrae 
super  eum,  et  livore  ejus  sanati  sunius.  Omnes  nos  sicut 
oves  erravimus ;  unusquisque  in  viam  suam  declinavimus, 
et  Dominus  fecit  occurri  in  eo — non  posuit  in  eo — iniqui- 
tatem  omnium  nostrum.  Exactus — non  oblatus,  ut  alias 
et  ipsa  Latina  traducit  in  Deut.  cap.  xv.  post  princip.,  ibi  : 
Exiges — et  ille  affiictus — quod  deest  in  Latina,  a  qua  turn 


536  JACOB  IBN   AMllAM.  [lii,  liii. 

falso  supponitur,  Quia  ipse  voluit,  o  impia  corruptela  ! — et 
non  aperiet  os  suum :  sicut  agniis  ad  occisionem  ductus 
est,  et  sicut  ovis  coram  tondentihus  se  obmutuit,  et  non 
aperiebat  os  suum.  De  detentione — non  de  angustia  : 
radix  autem  Judaica  (id  est,  aethymologica)  denotat  regnuin 
sive  dominium ;  lib.  Samuelis  sive  Regum  I^  cap.  ix.  vers.  17, 
ubi  Latina  etiam  vertit  dominabitur  :  detinct  enim,  sive 
cogit,  qui  imperat — et  de  judicio  sublatus  est.  Genera- 
tionem  ejus  quis  enarrabit  ?  quia  abscissus  fuit  de  terra 
vitae,  j)ropter  scelus  j^opidi  mei  2yiciga  eis — non  percussi 
eum,  in  singulari.  Et  dedit  impiis  sepultiirani  ejus — non 
vero  dabit  impios  p)^'0  sepidtura,  ut  in  Latina — et  divitem 
in  morte  ejus,  super  quod  nonfecerit  falsitatem,  nee  dolus 
in  ore  ejus.  Et  Dominus  voluit  conterere  eum,  et  fecit 
injirmari.  Si  p)0suerit  pro  emendatione — poenltentia,  noa 
peccato — animam  suam,  videbit  semen,  jyrolongabit  dies, 
et  voluntas  Domini  in  manu  ejus  2^^'0sj)ei^abitur.  Pro 
labore  animae  suae  videbit,  saturabitur :  cum  sainentia 
sua  justificabit  Justus  servus  midtos,  et  iniquitates  eorum 
ipseportabit.  Ideo  dispertiam  ei  cum  plurimis,  sive  magnis, 
et  fortitus,  sive  fortium,  dividet  spolium;  j^ro  eo  quod 
tradidit  animam  suam  morti,  et  sceleratis,  sen  transgres- 
soribus,  annumeratus  est :  et  ipse  peccata  multorum  tulit, 
et  pro  sceleratis  rogabit. — Haec  est  vera  traductio  ex  He- 
braico  in  Latinum,  et  conformiter  menti  prophctae.  Jam 
vides,  pie  ac  sapiens  lector,  quam  vitiosa  sit  Latina  versio,  ct 
difformis  veritati  Ilebr.,  in  iis  praesertim  quae  pro  stabilienda 
fide  sua  ab  eisdem  Christianis  perpenduntur :  adco,  ut  ad 
ilium,  illosque  propulsandos  ab  umbra  hujus  sacri  cloquii, 
sufficiat  rectitude,  et  restitutio  versionis,  do  qua  supra. 
Qua  supposita  (quod  attinet  ad  Judaeos)  non  parva  est 


lii.   13.]  JACOB    IBN    AM  RAM.  537 

difficultas  in  adhibendo  sensum  verbis  obscurissimis  Isaiae 
in  pracsenti  ;  indigent  plane  spiritu  proplietico.  Undo 
antiquiores  magistri  nostri  et  reconditiores  in  varia  abicrunt 
interpretainenta ;  utrique  tamcn  longe  remoti  a  Chrlstian- 
orum  expositione.  Nos  eorum  sumus  secuti  expositionem, 
qui  diffiniunt,  Isaiara  hie  loqui  de  populo  Israel :  cum  idem 
propheta  in  praecedenti  cap.  lii.  ante  finem  (cui  in  themate 
succedit  pracoppositum  cap.  liii)  de  eodem  populo  rcdi- 
mcndo  aperte  loquatur.  Quapropter  inde  trahenda  est 
interpretation  sicut  et  Isaiae  mens. 

Incipit  itaque  in  dicto  cap.  Hi.  a  vers.  13  :  Ecce  intelUget  lii. 
servus  mens,  exaltahitur,  elevabitur,  et  subUmis  erit  valde. 
In  hoc  prophetiae  principio  quatuor  praeeminentias,  quas 
Israel  habuerat,  et  exilio  et  dispersione  inter  gentes  perdi- 
derat,  recuperandas  propheta  praedicit :  nempe  intellectum, 
sive  sapientiam ;  regnum  ;  prophetiam ;  et  providentiam  Dei 
particuliter  assistentis.  Quae  ex  praescriptis  verbis  (quae 
alias  in  Latina  versione  videbantur  synonima^  et  ideo  otiosa, 
videlicet  exaltabitur,  elevabitur,  et  subUmis  erit)  juxta 
aethymon  Hebraicum  eleganter  extrahit,  et  docte  percurrit 
D.  Isaac  Abarbanel  ibidem,  quasi  propheta  dicat :  Ecce 
populus  meus  (Judaicus)  iterum  plane  intelliget,  ad  obse- 
quendum  Domino :  regnabit  super  omnes  gentes :  prophe- 
tabit,  id  est,  plene  noscet  voluntatem  Domini,  ut  infra 
nota[t]  :  et  a  Domino  protegetur  particulari  providentia, 
sicut  a  principio,  et  uberius.  Non  faciat  vobis  dubium,  quod 
nomine  servi  intelligatur  populus  Judaicus.  Nam  Israel 
servus  Domini  vocatur,  ut  per  eundem  Isai.  cap.  xli.  vers.  8, 
Jerem.cap.xxx.vers.  10, Psal.cxxxv.  Confitemini:  vers.22et 
passim.  Plerumque  in  his  locis  loquitur  Isaias  in  singular!, 
quamvis  intelligat  de  populo  Israel,  ne  quis  putet,  se  intelli- 


538  JACOB    IBN    AMRAM.  [lii.  14- 

gere  de  aliquibus  ex  dicto  populo,  qui  patiuntur  pro  peccatis 
patrum ;  sed  potius  de  toto  unite  populo,  quippe  totus 
nunc  patitur  pro  patribus,  et  eodem  antique  populo,  qui 

14  gravitcr,  et  saepissirae  peecavit.  Sicut  obstupuere  super  te 
multi,  sic  corruptus  de  viro  aspectus  ejus,  et  forma  ejus  de 
filiis  hominum ;  id  est,  queniadmodum  admirati  super  te 
multi,  quia  (ita  expone  lUud  sic)  corruptior  aspectus  ejus 
(Israel),  quam  ut  viro  competat,  et  forma  ejus,  quam  ut 
hominibus  assimilctur.  Sic  asperget  gentes  midtas  \e\  faciei 
loqui  gentes  multas ;  super  eum  continebunt  reges  os  suum, 
quia  quod  non  fuit  narratum  illis,  viderunt ;  et  quod  non 
audierunt  intellexerunt ;  id  est,  sic  (hie  respondet  admira- 
tioni  gentium)  vincet  ac  propellet  hue  illuc  gentes  multas, 
vel  faciet  loqui  gentes  multas,  videntes  populura  Judaicum, 
antca  abjectum,  et  omnino  despectum  utpote  servilem,  tunc 
exaltatum  nirais  valde ;  et  propterea  super  eum  reges  orbis 
cum  moderamine  et  pondere  aperient  [os]  suum,  quia 
vident  et  intelligunt,  quod  nee  illis  narratum  erat,  nee  antea 
audierant :  immo  totum  contrarium,  scilicet  populum  Judai- 
cum a  Deo  omnino  expositum  fuisse,  ut  gentibus  serviret, 
subque  ipsarum  dominio  viverent  dispersi.  Quae  verba  alias 
praepostere  intelligit  Paulus  in  epist.  ad  Romanes  cap.  xv. 
vers.  2 1 .  Quid  autem  loquentur  reges  mundi,  eum  continentia 
et  pondere  prosequitur  Isaias  in  sequenti  et  nobis  opposite 
cap.  liii,  ncmpe : 

•  I  Quis  credidit  auditui  nostro,  et  brachium  Domini  super 
quo  revelatwn  est?  Duo  hie  inculcat  propheta  cum  admira- 
tione  gentium :  Primum,  stuporem  ipsarum  gentium  super 
sue  lapsu ;  quod  scilicet  a  Judaeis  victae,  vel  prae  timore 
eorum,  loquuntur  de  eisdem  cum  continentia  et  pondere,  ob 
incogitatam  felicitatem,  ct  exaltationem  Judaeorum,  quasi 


-liii.  3.]  JACOB   IBN    AMllAM.  539 

ita  cxclamat :  Quis  unquam  tale  audiri  de  nobis  putasset,  aut 
quis  credidisset,  quod  nos  audivimus  ?  Secundum,  siquando 
in  mentcm  regum  orbis  venissct  vicissitude  populorum  aut 
regnorum,  quis  earn  applicassct  populo  Israel  ?  aut  dixisset, 
super  Israel  brachium  Domini,  id  est,  ejus  favorem  ac 
potestatem,  iterum  manifestandum  ?  Undo  praeposita  verba 
perperam  intelligit  Jobannes  in  Evangelic,  cap.  xii.  vers.  38, 
ubi  etiam  pro  auditui  reponit  dicto  contra  veritatem ;  et 
Paul  [us]  absone  exponit  ad  Eoman.  cap.  x.  vers.  16. — Et  2 
ascendit  sicut  virgidtum  coram  eo ;  et  sicut  radix  de  terra 
sicca.  Hie  reddit  rationem  stuporis  Regum  orbis;  quia 
nempe  a  parvis  initiis  profectum,  sicut  virgultum,  viderunt 
in  altum  ascendere  populum  Israel,  paulo  antea  abjectum, 
et  sicut  radicem  (quae  vivida  non  speratur)  de  terra  sicca  (in 
qua  alias  omnia  arescunt,  et  moriuntur)  coram  Deo  iterum 
favente  Judaeis.  No7i  forma  ei,  neque  decor,  et  vidimus, 
et  non  aspectus,  et  desiderabimus  eum.  Dictae  rationis 
rationem  reddit,  et  auget ;  quia  populo  Israel  (Judaeis)  in 
captivitate  et  dispersione  nulla  forma  est,  nuUus  oris 
splendor ;  et  attente  considerabimus  eum,  nee  adhuc  ei 
aspectus  (humanus)  nobis  visus  erat.  Et  quis  imputabit 
nobis  quod  non  desideraremus  eum  ?  id  est,  non  speraremus 
illius  vicissitudinem,  sive  mutationem  in  gloriam  ?  cum  ante 
de  eo  tale  quid  non  imaginaremur :  praecedit  namque  desi- 
derium,  sive  spem,  imaginatio ;  quod  etiam  confirmat  in 
seqq.  Despectum,  et  deminutum  honiinum,  viruni  dolorum,  3 
et  scientem  infirmitatem ;  id  est,  si  exulem  Israel  contem- 
plabamur,  ab  omnibus  spretum  videbamus,  caeteris  homini- 
bus  inferiorem,  vel  ab  hominum  consortio  ablegatum  (quia 
scilicet  omnes  gentes  Judaeos  a  se  propulsant,  aut  saltern 
cogitant  vel   desiderant  exterminare),  dominum   dolorum, 


540  JACOB   IBN    AMllAM.  [liii.  4- 

quia  non  nisi  doloribus  abundat,  et  assuetuin  infirmitatibus 
propter  continuum  in  Exilio  pavorom,  et  inde  subcrescentem 
maerorem.  Et  sicut  abscondentem  vultum  a  nobis — vel 
a  se — despectum,  et  non  reputavimus  eum;  id  est,  adeo 
despectus  erat,  ut  ipse  affectaret  abscondcre  vultum  a  nobis 
gentilibus :  vel  ita  simulabat  se,  ne  forte  a  se  ipso  agno- 
sceretur  Judaeus,  ut  passim  cvenit.  Et  si  quando  cognitus 
esset,  spretus  erat  ab  omnibus,  et  contumeliis  affectus :  et 
ideo  non  reputavimus  eum  in  numero  hominum,  de  quibus 

4  posset  vicissitude  iniquae  sortis  spcrari.  Vero  langores 
nostros  ipse  tulit,  et  dolores  nostras  p)ortavit ;  id  est, 
langores,  et  dolores,  quibus  nos  (Reges  et  nationes  orbis) 
dedimus  causam  (et  propterea  nostros  dicimus,  n.  6'^^'^)  ipse 
perpessus  est.  Nam  ex  continua  oppressione,  tyrannide 
gentium,  et  servitute  ac  timore  Judaeorum,  incidunt  ipsi 
Judaei  in  dolores,  et  langores.  Loquitur  itaque  propheta 
de  langoribus,  et  doloribus  propriis,  et  ab  ipso  populo 
Judaico  personaliter  perpessis,  ex  causa  tamen  aliena,  ut 
patet  ex  vers.  seq. :  unde  etiam  colligitur  absona  expositio 
Matthaei,  cap.  viii.  vers.  17.  Et  nos  aestimavimus  eum 
plagatwn,  percussum  a  Domino,  et  affiictmn;  id  est,  cum 
sit  quod  propter  malitiam  nostram  (gentium)  Israel  inci- 
debat  in  langores,  et  dolores ;  nos  putabamus,  ilium  esse 
plagatum,  percussum,  et  afflictum  a  Domino ;  non  vero  a 

5  nobis,  nee  causa  nostra.  Et  ipse  dolorosus  propter  iniqui- 
tates  nostras,  et  attritus  ptropter  scelera  nostra  ;  id  est,  non 
quidem  Israel  in  hoc  exilio  propter  peccata  sua  plagatus 
principaliter  a  Domino  erat,  ac  percussus ;  sad  ei  potius 
adveniebant  langores  et  dolores  propter  nostras  iniquitates 
et  scelera:  inique  enim,  ac  scelcrate  agebamus  cum  eo. 
Disciplina  pads  nostrae  super  eum,  et  livore  eius  sanati 


-Hii.  5.]  JACOB    IBN    AMKAM.  541 

sumus;  id  est,  cum  nos  (Reges  et  nationes  orbis)  eramus 
in  pace,  quidquid  statuebamus  pro  disciplina  et  regimine 
Rcipublicae  nostrae^totum  vergebat  in  perniciem  Judaeorum, 
ut  videlicet  vel  cjicercntur  e  finibus  nostris,  vel  aliter  puni- 
rentur,  morte,  sive  (quod  durius  et  iniquius  est)  coacta  con- 
versione  adreligioncmnostram ;  et  tandem  non  quiescebamus, 
nee  sanabamur,  a  cura  persequendi  Israel,  nisi  percusso  eo 
et  livore  ejus. — Vel  etiam  expone,  quod  stante  pace  inter 
gentes  (nam  bellum  inter  illas  mentem  distrahit  a  Judaeis, 
et  illorum  religionc)  si  forsan  aliquid  sinistri  succedebat, 
V.  c.  mortalitas,  vel  morbus  epidimialis,  statira  in  plateis, 
in  triviis,  in  suggestis^  fiebant  sermones,  praedicationes,  et 
exclamationes  ab  eorum  magistris  et  sanctonibus  (qui  alias 
Solent  g-entem  suam  corrigere,  et  castigare,  ut  ad  ipsorum 
Deum,  vel  Deos^  convertantur),  et  haec  tota  doctrina  et 
castigatio  (in  statu  pacis  eorum)  vertebatur  super  Israel,  ut 
nempe  Judaei  publicentur  causa  illius  mali  occurrentis,  et 
ita  vel  occidantur,  vel  ablegentur ;  et  plane  occidebantur,  vel 
ablegabantur,  cessabatque  communis  mortalitas,  sic  per- 
niittente  Deo.  Et  bine  livore  eorum  gentes  (ut  putaba- 
tur)  sanabantur. — Vel  denique  intellige,  quod  disciplina 
pacis  sumatur  oranino  pro  pace  corporali,  id  est,  sanitate,  et 
valetudine  corporis :  ita  ut  valetudo  generalis  gentium  sit 
super  Israel,  ut  quando  supervenit  aliquis  communis  morbus, 
pro  illius  curatione  agatur  de  castigandis  Judaeis,  velut 
causa  morbi ;  in  eoque  versatur  tota  disciplina,  sive  doctrina 
pacis  corporalis  gentium,  ut  ita  de  piano  procedat,  quod 
propbeta  subjungit  et  livore  ejus  sanati  sumus.  Triplex  ista, 
et  quaelibet  expositio  impleta  jam  saepissime  est  in  hoc 
longo  Judaeorum  exilio,  nunc  in  hoc,  nunc  in  illo  regno, 
et  aliquando  in  omnibus  simul.     Unde  perperam  praedicta 


542  JACOB    IBN    AMRAM.  [Hii.  6- 

verba   alias   adducit   Petrus   in  Epist.  i.  cap.  2,  ante  fin. 

6  Omnes  nos,  sicut  oves  erravimus,  unusquisque  in  viam 
suam  declinavinms,  et  Dominus  fecit  occurri  in  eo  iniqui- 
tatem  omnium  nostrum;  id  est,  cum  nos  omnes  sicut  oves 
erravimus,  Edom  in  viam  suam,  Ismael  in  viam  suam,  et 
caeteri  similiter :  attamen  unusquisque  nostrum  unanimiter 
et  indifferenter  contra  Israel  statuebat  ex  propria  diversa- 
que  religione,  et  indifferenter  a  quolibet  nostrum  patiebatur 
Israel.  Et  quod  notabilius  est,  Deus  ita  dirigcbat  iniqui- 
tatem  nostram,  ut  Judacos  offenderet :  singuli  cnim  puta- 
bamus  Judacos  castigari  debere  quia  religionem  nostram 
non  amplectebantur :  et  consequenter  Judaei  ipsi  portabant, 
seu  supportabant,  iniquitatem  nostram  sive  crrorem,  poenam 
indebite  patientes,  nempc  ex  diversa  sive  contraria  causa, 

7  respcctu  Christianorum,  Maurorum,  etc.  Exactus,  et  ille 
ajfflictus,  et  non  aperiet  os  suuni :  sicut  agnus  ad  occisionem 
ductus  est ;  et  sicut  ovis  coram  tondentibus  se  ohmutuit ;  id 
est,  ab  illo  severe  exigebamus  pecuniam,  ut  ultra  corporis 
afflictionem,  in  bonis  etiam  pateretur,  et  non  aperiet  os 
suum  ;  sicut  agnus  ducebatur  ad  occisionem,  ut  comederetur 
a  nobis,  et  sicut  ovis  muta  coram  tondentibus  se  ita  Israel 
coram  nobis  praedantibus  cum,  ut  in  inquisitione  Hispaniae. 
De  patientia  Israel  loquitur  propheta,  de  praeterito,  et  de 
future ;  quia  non  unus  sed  plures  actus  successive  tempore 
denotantur.  Hue  usque  loquuntur  (ut  praedicit  Isai.)  Reges 
et  nationes  orbis,  stupefacti  ob  lapsum  et  ruinam  imperii 
ipsorum,  sublevato  Israel,  quem  jam  non  reputabant  popu- 
lum  denuo  exaltandum,  percurrentes  ejusdem  variam  et 
infcliccra  fortunam  ob  iniquitatem  ipsarum  gentium.    Incipit 

8  modo  loqui  propheta  de  eodem  Israel.  De  detentione  et 
judicio  suhlatus  est;  generationem  ejus  quis  enarrabit?  id 


-liii.  8.]  JACOB   IBN    AMRAM.  543 

est,  iste  populus  Israel,  quem  Reges  ct  gentes  terrae  repu- 
tabant  non  populura,  non  virum,  sine  forma  et  decore, 
despectum  ac  dcminutum,  plenum  doloribus  et  assucfactum 
infirmitatibus,  non  fuit  ita  a  principio  ;  penes  ilium  namque 
erat  dominium  sive  regnum  (quod  detentione  significatur, 
ut  superius  ostendimus),  et  sublime  illud  justitiae  tribunal, 
sive  judicium  Sanhedrin :  quis  celsitudincra  illius  genera- 
tionis,  id  est  teraporis  illius  (nam  verbum  in  dor,  quo 
propbeta  utitur,  ei  generationem  Latinaraus,  tempus  denotat: 
Exodi  cap.  iii.  vers.  5,  et  patct  ex  omnibus  concordantiis  sa- 
crae  paginae)  enarrare  poterit?  in  quo  florebat  regali  dominio 
excelsoque  judicio,  et  tamen  regno  ac  judicio  privatus  est  a 
Domino,  cui  peccaverunt  patres  nostri.  Loquitur  propbeta 
de  privatione  regni  et  judicii  in  terra  sancta.  Vel,  quis 
tempus  illud  (nempe,  miseriam  et  calamitatem  ejus)  enarra- 
bit  ?  in  quo  privatus  fuit  regno,  et  judicio ;  partim  occiso 
Israel,  partim  expulso  a  terra  sancta.  Quem  sensum  probat 
vers.  seq. :  quid  autem  somnicnt  Acta  Apostolorum,  cap. 
viii.  vers.  '^'^^  penitus  ignoratur,  dum  contra  veritatem 
Hebraicam  et  Latinam  etiam  traducunt  ibi :  '  In  humilitate 
judicium  ejus  sublatum  est,  et  suam  generationem  (pro 
genitiira)  quis  enarrabit?' — Quia  ahscissus  fuit  de  terra 
vitae,  propter  scelus  populi  mei  plaga  eis.  Hie  rationem 
reddit  aerumnarum  Judaeorum,  quod  regno  et  tribunali 
justitia  privati  sint,  et  refert  principalem,  quod  nempe  a 
terra  sancta  ipsorum  patria  abstract!  sint ;  quod  durius  erat 
occisione  eorum.  Et  quae  fuit  causa  ob  quam  occisi  et 
expulsi  sint  a  terra  vitae  ?  (sancta  terra  vitae  solet  appel- 
lari,  Ezechiel  cap.  xxxii.  a  vers.  24;  notat  ex  Cbristianis 
Adricomius  Delplius,  in  Chronico  mundi  anno  3374.)  Illud 
certum  est,  quod  propter  scelus  populi  mei  (patrum  varie 


544  JACOB    IBN    AMRAM.  [Hii.  y- 

peccantium)  jylar/a,  afflictio,  exactio,  ablegatio,  et  dolor 
successit  eis,  id  est,  filiis,  sivc  populo  Israel  successivis 
temporibus  in  timore  Domini,  et  legis  custodia  pcrsistcnti. 
In  hoc  etiam  versu  soraniant  Acta  Apost.  cap.  viii.  vers.  ^^, 
dum  contra  veritatem  et  Latinam  etiam  versioncm  ita  in- 
vertunt  ibi :  '  quia  tolletur  de  terra  vita  ejus  : '  Deus  autcm 
ob  culpam  patrum  pcrcutiebat  Judacos  descendentes,  inter- 
9  ventu  Rcgum  et  gentium  orbis,  ut  supra.  Et  cledit  impiis 
sepulturam  ejus,  et  divitem  in  morte  ejus ;  id  est,  propter 
scelus  populi  mei  non  solum  perdidit  Israel  regnum  et 
judicium,  sed  etiam  cum  exterminio  a  terra  sancta  sepul- 
turam quam  mortuus  sortiretur  in  cadem  terra  Deus  iratus 
dedit  impiis  immerentibus  qui  in  eadera  terra  sancta  sepeli- 
untur.  Item,  loco  Regis  Judaei  dedit,  sive  posuit,  divitem, 
id  est,  dominum  (non  llegem)  ex  gentibus  in  eadcm  terra 
sancta,  ut  regeret ;  quod  experientia  comprobatur.  Quam 
terram  sanctam,  quia  jam  destituta  est  populo  suo  Israel 
(eo  vel  expulso  vel  subjecto)  non  vocat  vitae  sed  mortis  ejus. 
Nam  respectu  Judaeorum  expulsorum,  aut  in  eadem  occi- 
sorum,  merito  dicenda  est  terra  mortis ;  non  enim  vivunt  in 
ea,  vel  serviliter  vivunt ;  turn  quia  possessam  ab  alicnis  non 
decct  appellari  terram  vitac,  sed  mortis.  In  versionc  hujus 
vers,  crassissime  hallucinatur  Latina  Jeronimi  traductio,  ut 
supra  notavimus  in  corrcctione  literae.  Super  quod  non 
fecerit  fahitatem,  nee  dolus  in  ore  ejus;  id  est  respectu 
gentium  iraperantium  sibi  fiilsitatem  non  fecit  Israel,  ncc 
in  ore  ejus  inventus  est  dolus  contra  tales  nationes  ac 
Reges  eorum  (quicquid  a  gentibus  contrarium  asseratur), 
Sophonias,  cap.  ult.  vers.  13,  ibi  :  '  Reliquiae  Israel  non 
facient  iniquitatem,  nee  loquentur  mendacium,  et  non  in- 
venietur  in  ore  eorum  lingua  dolosa/  etc.,  Daniel,  cap.  xii. 


-liii,    lO.]  JACOB    IBN    AMKAM.  545 

vers.  7,  ibi :  '  Etcum  completa  fuerit  dispersio  populi  sancti,' 
etc.,  ubi  dispersum  Israel,  ut  modo  est,  vocat  populum 
sanctum.  Similiter  Isai.  cap.  Ixiii.  vers.  i8,  ibi:  'Quasi 
nihilurn  possiderunt  (ut  nunc  possident)  populum  sanctum 
tuum,'  etc.  Peccaverunt  tamen  patres  contra  Dominum 
Deum  suum;  ea  propter  meriti  sunt  exilium  et  dispersionem, 
et  in  eadem  permanent  filii  eorum,  custodientes  legem  Dei. 
Et  Dominus  voluit  conterere  eum,  et  fecit  inftrmari ;  id  est, 
quamvis  in  Israel  non  inveniatur  falsitas  aut  dolus  adversus 
gentes  imperantes  sibi,  Dominus  voluit  affligere,  et  debili- 
tare  eum  (putantibus  gentibus  Israel  esse  falsarium  et 
dolosum,  et  idcirco  castigantibus  eum),  tum  ob  purgandam 
patrum  culpam,  juxta  Jerem.  cap.  xxxi.  vers.  29,  et  in 
Lamentat.  cap.  ult.,  cum  similibus :  tum  etiam  ob  propriam 
contra  Dominum ;  non  tamen  ut  extingueret  eum,  aut 
abjiceret,  sed  ut  poeniteret  ac  reverteretur,  juxta  Levit. 
cap.  xxvi.  vers.  44,  Deuter.  cap.  xxx.  a  princ,  Jerem.  cap. 
xlvi.  vers.  ult.  Si  posuerit  pro  emendatione  (poenitentia) 
animam  sitam,  videbit  semen,  prolongahit  dies,  et  voluntas 
Domini  in  manu  ejus  prosperabitur  ;  id  est,  cum  Dominus 
non  in  perditionem  populum  suum  ablegaVerit  et  disperserit, 
si  eum  iniquitatum  suarum  ac  patrum  contra  Deum  poeni- 
tuerit,  reducetur  ad  feliciorem  aetatem,  quam  fuerit  prima, 
ut  praedicit  Deuter.  cap.  iv.  vers.  30,  et  cap.  xxx.  vers,  i, 
et  passim ;  generabit  beatam  prolem,  quam  vivam  videbit ; 
satiabitur  diebus,  quos  prolongabit;  et  erit  semper  gratus 
Domino,  et  obtemperans.  Hie  etiam  innuit  propheta  de  iis 
qui  constanter  exponunt  sive  ponunt  animam  suam  pro  legis 
(quam  violaverant  ipsi  vel  patres  ipsorum)  tutela,  et  vel 
creraantur,  vel  alitor  necantur  ex  judicio  gentium.  Jesus 
non  prolongavit  dies,  quia  anno  33  aetatis  periit  in  cruce: 

N  n 


546  JACOB   IBN    AMRAM.  [liii.    n- 

nec  vidit  semen,  id  est,  legitimum  ex  foemorc  suo,  ut  semper 
intelligitur  in  sacra  pagina,  ut  late  n.  66y.  Pro  labore 
animae  suae  videbit,  saturabitiir ;  id  est,  post  redemp- 
tionem  et  reductionem  Israel  ad  terram  sanctam,  videbit 
satietatem  (pro  qua  laboravit  colens  terram),  et  ipse  satia- 
bitur;  aliud  erat  antea,  ex  Levit.  cap.  xxvi.  vers.  i6,  et 
Deuter.  cap.  xxviii.  vers.  30,  et  vers.  33,  quasi  dicat,  in 
novissimo  dierum,  cum  Israel  redemptus  et  reductus  fuerit 
ad  terram  sanctam  suam  et  viderit  ubertatem  ejus,  ipse  non 
alienus  fruetur  ea,  Deuter.  cap.  xxx.  vers.  9,  Isai.  cap.  xxxii. 
vers.  8,  et  cap.  Ixv.  a  vers.  21,  Amos  cap.  ult.  vers.  14,  cum 
similibus ;  turn  etiam  pro  labore  animae  quam  pro  Deo  ex- 
posuit  supplicio  gentium.  Cum  sapientia  sua  justificahit 
Justus  servus  mens  multos,  et  iniquitates  eorum  ipse  portahit ; 
id  est,  tempore  quo  Israel  in  praedictis  angustiis  positus 
Justus  erit,  justificabit  multos  ex  gentibus,  quos  doccbit,  vel 
alitor  traliet  ad  Dei  vexilla.  Cum  sapientia  sua;  id  est, 
sapienter ;  quia  nonnisi  sapienter,  argute,  ac  subtiliter  (ob 
metum  gentium)  ostcndit  ipsis  errorem  ipsarum :  atque  ita 
illos  sapienter  convertit  ad  Dominum  (rari  namque  ex 
gentibus  sponte  quaerunt,  et  audiunt  de  absoluta  Dei  volun- 
tate,  et  justitia  legis  Moysaicae)  et  propterea  dicuntur 
justificati  cum  sapientia  Israel.  Et  borum  iniquitates  (antea 
contractas,  ob  quas  non  merebuntur  justificari ;  vel  a  quibus 
alias  purgari  debebunt)  Israel  ipse  portabit,  ut  proprias. 
Sive  propter  dictam  conversionem  multorum  gcntilium  ad 
Deum,  ab  Israel  causatam,  quam  gcntes  alias  iniquita- 
tem  putant,  ipse  Israel  convertens  tormenta  patietur:  et 
consequenter  reputatam  iniquitatem  conversorum  (ad  Deum 
Judaeorum)  portabit,  sou  supportabit  Israel  convertens,  seu 
justificans.     Nam  apud  Christianos  praesertim,  convertens 


-liii.  12.]  JACOB  IBN  AJiRAjr.  547 

ad  legem  Moysaicam  gravissime  punitur,  ut  est  notum. 
Ideo  dispertiatn  ei  cum  m.ultis{\Q\  magnis)  et  fortibus  (sive 
fortium)  dividet  spolium ;  id  est,  propter  meritum  populi  mei 
pracnotatunij  dabo  ei  partem  cmn  multis  justis,  ut  inter  cos 
appareat  quantum  meritus  est.  Vel,  dabo  ei  partem  cum 
magnis,  illis  nempe  primis  parcntibus,  Abraham,  Isaac,  et 
Jacob.  Nam  idem  verbum  rahim  pariter  multos,  ac  in- 
signes  quoque  et  excelsos  viros  significat.  Itidem  fortibus, 
eis  scilicet  qui  pro  veritate,  nempe  Deo,  et  ejus  sacra  lege 
animose  steterunt,  Israel  dividet  spolium  gentium  pecca- 
tricum.  Vel,  fortium  dividet  spolium,  id  est,  victoriam 
reportabit  (turn  enim  spolia  dividuntur)  electarum  gentium, 
quae  convenerint  contra  Jerusalem  in  notissirao  tempore, 
ac  bello,  ut  per  Ezechiel,  cap.  xxxviii.  et  seq.,  ubi  loquitur 
de  fortibus  gentium  qui  cadent  victi  in  montibus  Sanctis, 
notabiliter  Joel,  cap.  iii.  Zacharias  (ubi  etiam  meminit  spoli- 
orum  gentium),  cap.  xiv.  et  tandem  generaliter  Jeremias, 
cap.  XXV.  vers.  30.  Pro  eo  quod  tradidit  morti  animam 
suam,  et  sceleratis  cmnumeratus  est ;  et  ipse  peccata  mul- 
toi'um  tidit ;  et  pro  transgressorihus  rogahit ;  id  est,  prae- 
miorum  (quae  superius  retulimus  Deum  i^  novissimo  dierum 
daturum  populo  Israel)  causae  hie  per  Epilogum  proponun- 
tur  ;  et  imprimis,  quia  animam  posuit  pro  Deo  et  sancta 
lege  ejus  inter  gentes  quarum  ritus  noluit  amplecti  et 
idcirco  varie  passus  est.  Nam  si  vellet  a  lege  Domini 
deficere,  reciperetur  equidem  a  gentibus  cum  praemiis. 
Deinde,  quia  maluit  sceleratis  annumerari  (quatcnus,  licet 
injuste,  ei  opponitur  quod  interfecerit  vel  non  receperit 
Jesum,  aut  aliorura  sectas,  ut  clamant  Edom,  et  Ismael, 
etc.)  quam  legem  Domini  Dei  sui  deserere,  quidquid  eadem 
verba  perperam  exponat  Marcus   in   Evangelio,  cap.  xv. 


548  JACOB    TBN    AMRAM.  [liil.   12. 

vers.  28,  et  diversimode  Lucas,  cap.  xxii.  vers.  37.  Prae- 
terca,  quia  peccata  patrum  tulit  qui  comederant  uvam 
accrbam  (peccaverant),  propter  quod  dentes  filiorum  obstu- 
puerunt,  vel  filii  passi  sunt ;  quae  proverbialis  ratio  usque 
ad  postrema  tempora  erit  in  ore  Judaeorum,  ut  per  Jerem. 
et  Ezechiel.  praecitatos.  Vel  quia  gentium  ab  ipsis  con- 
versarura  iniquitates  perpcssus  est,  ut  praediximus.  Deni- 
que,  quia  (quod  supremum  justitiae  est)  pro  sceleratis  filiis 
Israel  transgressoribus  legis  (ut  nunc  sunt  et  fuerunt  plu- 
rimi,  proh  dolor !)  rogabit  dominium,  et  quotidie  deprecatur. 
Ob  has  itaque  causas  optimam  partem  in  future  saeculo 
sortietur,  et  omnibus  erit  celsior  Regibus  et  nationibus, 
eisdemque  imperabit  Israel.  Haec  abunde  dicta  sunt  ad 
saepe  nobis  oppositura  Isai. ;  quod  jam  ut  paremia  est  lippis 
et  tonsoribus  gentium. 


(840) 

Adducitur  secuudo  principaliter  Isai.  cap.  liii.  vers.  4, 
ibi :  DTi^x  naiD  juxta  expositionem  Bellarmini  De  verbo, 
lib.  ii.  cap.  2,  vers,  argumentum  quartum,  dum  inquit, 
Relata  Isaiae  verba  Latine  verti  possunt,  2)Cfcussum  Deum^ 
ut  ita  deitatem  crucifixo  tribuat,  de  quo  totum  illud  cap.  liii. 
Christiani  intelligunt. 

Cacterura,  cum  hi  fallantur  in  hoc,  ita  et  Bellarminus 
decipitur  in  sua  versione.  Nam  caput  illud  loquitur  de  uno 
plurium  vicem  gerente,  id  est,  populo  Israel ;  ut  jam  supra 
ex  puritate  text.  Hebraici  late  sumus  interpretati  a  m.  613. 

Praeterea,  versio  Bellarmini  apcrte  repugnat  dementis 
grammaticae  Hebraicae,  ut  est  notissimum  quibusque  illius 


liii.  4.]  JACOB    IBN    AMUAM.  549 

professoribus :  verbum  enim  naio  muge  est  Samuh,  et  ponit 
sequcns  substantivum  {elohim)  in  genitivo,  idque  est,  per- 
cussum  Dei.  Jeronimus  vertit,  percussus  a  Deo  :  nee 
versionem  Bellarmini  Jeronimus  praetermitteret,  aut  igno- 
raret  (cum  longe  Bellarminum  excelleret  in  sacro  idiomate) 
si  rationabilis  aut  tolerabilis  esset,  cum  alias  remotissima  et 
alienissima  quaeque  ad  Christianorum  mentem  trahat,  ut 
saepe  vidistis. 


LII.    Y'HUDAH    BEN    BAKAM. 


LII.  "  nnC'JD,  participle  of  Hofal.  The  regular  form  would 
be  nnC'D  like  i?^^  (2  Sam.  xx.  21).  inNm  with  Holem  like 
l^ys  (Jer.  xxii.  13),  the  regular  forms  of  both  being  with  Qamez 
Hatef,  as  )bv^  (Job  xxxvi.  24).  I  am  surprised  at  one  who,  while 
adhering  to  the  usual  explanation  of  the  word  in  Jeremiah,  main- 
tained, in  his  Letters  of  Friendship  *,  that  in  Job  it  was  an  active 
participle  signifying  worker  or  labourer.  In  that  case  113!!' 
must  be  understood  after  1^  jn""  vh.  AVhen  I  was  explaining 
the  verse  in  question,  I  saw  that  in  fact  7yQ  meant  wages,  and 
that  the  phrase  referred  back  to  the  preceding  passage  inyia 
DJn  l^y,  describing  the  man  who  employs  his  neighbour's  services, 
but  does  not  pay  him  the  wages  he  earns.  ^^  T\V  ■  he  will  judge 
them  by  sending  calamities  upon  them,  amongst  which  will  be 
the  sprinkling  of  their  blood  (Is.  Ixiii.  3). 

LIII.  ^"inDO,  infinitive,  '^hno,  passive  participle  of  Piel. 
The  meaning  is  that  he  was  prostrated  by  our  sins,  and  stricken 
by  our  offences,  just  as  though  he  wei'e  punished  for  us.  This 
eminent  saint,  while  bearing  the  chastisements  which  came  upon 
him  as  a  trial  (since  he  had  committed  no  sin),  attracted  to 
himself,  as  it  were,  all  the  chastisements  due  to  us,  and  gave  us 
2)eace  for  them ;  thus  they  came  upon  him,  and  bg  his  stripes 

*  A  series  of  letters  by  R.  Samuel  the  Nagid  (i.  e.  the  Prince),  containing 
criticisms  against  R.  Yonah  (Abu-1-Walid)  ibn  Janah.  See  Derenbourg's 
preface  to  his  edition  of  R.  Yonah's  Opmcida. 


liii.7-12.]  y'hudah  ben  bal'am.  551 

we  ivere  healed.  imiDn,  a  substantive.  We  liave  already  ex- 
plained the  possibility  of  God's  acting  in  such  a  way,  in  virtue 
of  a  substitution  decreed  by  him.  ^njyj,  participle  Nif'al  in 
the  sense  of  afflicted  (Exod.  iii.  7),  and,  in  the  feminine,  nays 
(Is.  Iviii.  10),  except  that  there  the  n  is  the  mark  of  the  femi- 
nine, whilst  the  radical  n  is  dropped.  *  He  ivas  removed  from 
affliction  and  trial,  and  no  one  can  tell  of  Mm,  for  his  fame  was 
cut  off  from  the  land  of  life,  and  through  the  sin  of  my  people  he 
was  tempted.  ID?  fur  I7,  i.  e.  his  suffering  was  only  for  the  sake 
of  the  nation's  sin,  and  not  because  he  deserved  it  at  all  himself; 
as  it  is  said,  althourjh  lie  did  no  violence,  etc.  ^^  ''?nn  from  N?n 
like  N''Dnn  (i  Kings  xvi.  26).  The  sense  of  the  verse  is  that  the 
Lord  willed  his  sickness  in  order  that  his  soul  might  see  guilt 
as  guilt,  i.  e.  that  he  might  avoid  it,  in  opposition  to  the  man 
who  does  not  see  sin  as  a  sin,  but  perseveres  in  his  disobedience. 
There  is  a  similar  saying  in  Arabic,  where  one  of  the  preachers 
says.  By  the  Lord,  shew  me  error  as  an  error  in  order  that 
I  may  abstain  from  it,  rectitude  as  rectitude  in  order  that 
I  may  follow  it.  '^  myn,  he  laid  bare  his  soul  to  death, 
i.  e.  he  exposed  it  to  terrible  dangers.  Aoid  was  numbered  with 
the  transgressors,  was  as  if  he  were  reckoned  amongst  them  in 
consequence  of  the  afflictions  resting  on  him.  Any  one  not 
knowing  his  mind,  would  think  there  was  some  evil  in  him,  for 
which  he  was  being  punished,  whereas  in  fact  he  was  carrying 
the  sin  of  others,  as  it  is  said,  But  he  bare  the  sin  of  many,  etc. 
yjD'',  interceded  and  prayed  for  them,  as  Jer.  vii.  16. 

It  has  been  asserted  that  the  person  alluded  to  in  this  pro- 
phecy is  Jeremiah;  and  the  description  given  in  it  is  quite 
consistent  with  such  an  interpretation.  Ibn  Jiqatilia  ^  applies 
the  Parashah  to  the  king  Hezekiah :  but  I  do  not  know  at  what 
time  Hezekiah  was  stricken,  smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted,  or 
ojypressed,  and  opened  not  his  mouth.     Indeed,  it  is  surprising 

'*  R.  Mosheh  liak-Kohen,  who  lived  about  1 200  a .  d.  Sec  Mr.  Nutt's  preface 
to  his  edition  of  Hayyuj's  treatises  (London,  1869). 


552  "i'HUDAH    BEN    BALAAf.  [lu,  liii. 

how  this  commentator  can  have  entertained  such  a  view;  he 
must  have  overlooked  the  words,  Came  up  as  a  sucker  before 
liim,  and  as  a  root  out  of  the  dry  land,  etc.,  applied  by  the 
prophet  to  the  saint  here  described.  And  I  am  not  aware  of 
any  of  Hezekiah's  ancestors  since  Solomon  who  possessed  greater 
personal  beauty  or  majesty  than  Hezekiah  himself. 


i 


LIII.     R.  THANHUM    OF    JERUSALEM. 


LII.  "7''3B'%  will  i^rosjper,  as  i  Sam.  xvii.  14,  Josh.  i.  8, 
'^  HvV,  '  at  thee,'  is  equivalent  to  Ivy,  '  at  him,'  referring  to  '  my 
servant,'  as  iriNID  and  "nNTl,  in  both  of  which  the  suffix  is  that  of 
the  third  person.  nnt^fD,  equivalent  to  nnc'i,  and  denoting  his 
changed  and  marred  appearance ;  he  was  at  first  in  their  eyes 
marred  in  figure  and  abhorred,  the  object  of  neither  reverence 
nor  esteem,  but  vile  and  unclean,  despised  and  poor,  exactly  as 
the  prophet  represents  him  above  (xlix.  7),  'Despised  in  soul, 
abhorred  of  the  nation,  slave  of  rulers.'  In  consequence  of  this 
his  miserable  condition,  men  dreaded  and  abhorred  the  sight 
of  him,  and  shunned  his  presence,  until  his  appearance  again 
altered  and  he  became  such  as  is  indicated  by  the  words  imme- 
diately following  the  passage  cited,  '  Kings  shall  see  and  shall 
stand  up,  princes,  and  shall  do  homage.'  ^^  The  prophet  con- 
tinues in  a  similar  strain,  So  mil  fie  sprinkle  many  nations,  etc., 
for  they  were  exceedingly  astonished  at  his  condition,  wondering 
how  any  person  or  nation  could  pass  thus  strangely  and  sud- 
denly from  one  state  to  another,  without  any  visible  cause,  but 
by  the  command  and  secret  counsel  of  God.  And  there  was 
indeed  reason  for  this  astonishment.  nT*  (as  Ixiii.  3),  will 
sprinkle  their  blood  and  pour  it  abroad,  slaying  them  either 
with  an  open  sword  in  field  of  battle,  or  else  with  a  secret 
sword,  as  happened  to  Sanherib  and  his  people.  Or  TW  may  be 
understood  to  mean  that  he  will  scatter  them  and  disperse  their 
company  as  though  it  wei-e  some  fluid  which,  when  sprinkled, 
becomes  so  parted  and  broken  up  that  it  is  impossible  to  gather 


554  1{.  TIIAXIIUM    OF   JERUSALEM.  [liii.  2- 

it  together  again,  as  it  is  said  (2  Sam.  xiv.  14),  'We  are  as  water 
spilt  on  the  ground,  which  cannot  be  gathered  up  again.'  The 
expression  will  then  be  metaphorical.  At  him  Icings  vnll  close 
their  mouth,  for  reverence  and  awe,  or  in  astonishment  at  his 
condition:  compare  Ps.  cvii.  42,  Job  v.  16. 

LIII.  ■  ^V"),  as  xxxiv.  13;  he  grew  up  like  a  small  shoot. 
pJV,  as  Ps.  Ixxx.  12  :  a  similar  metaphor  is  employed  in  chap. 
xi.  I.  He  had  no  form,  etc.  :  at  the  beginning  he  had  no  cheer- 
ful countenance  such  as  might  inspire  a  desire  to  gaze  at  him. 
^  He  was  despised  (as  it  is  said  above,  xlix.  7),  and  the  frailest  of 
men  as  regarded  his  body,  although  stronger  than  other  men  in 
so  for  as  his  soul  was  concerned.  'IJI  "inD^Dai,  when  he  hid  him- 
self from  us,  and  was  concealed  from  our  sight,  in  consequence  of 
his  ignoble  and  despised  condition,  no  one  thought  of  him, — 
no  one  cared  whether  he  were  absent  or  present,  or  indeed 
bestowed  a  thought  upon  him  at  all.  *But  he  was  regarded 
by  us  as  a  sinner  enduring  punishment :  in  other  words,  we 
thouglit  that  his  pains  and  sickness  were  a  punishment  sent 
upon  him  from  God,  and  merited  by  him  for  his  sins  and  crimes  ; 
accordingly  we  ever  viewed  him  with  an  eye  of  scorn  and  con- 
tempt. But  now  we  know  of  a  surety  that  his  separation  from 
us  and  his  isolation  resulted  only  in  our  punishment :  for  in 
his  sicknesses  and  sufferings  he  was  wholly  concerned  with  what 
would  conduce  to  our  welfare  and  advantage  :  these  were  conse- 
quently, in  fact,  our  sickness  and  punishment.  '"'  Notwithstanding 
this  he  was  pained  continually  at  our  failure  to  secure  deliver- 
ance and  prosperity ;  and  in  spite  of  his  own  prostration,  was 
concerned  further  with  sympathy  for  us.  The  cliastisement  of 
the  whole  of  us  came  upon  him, — IJDvC,  as  in  Jer.  xiii.  19, 
where  D''J3vtJ'  n?3n  means  that  the  entire  mass  of  Judah  was 
taken  captive.  'y\  T?'\T\'0,  i.e.  he  was  pained  and  gi-ieved  at  seeing 
our  sins  and  our  being  far  from  righteousness.  ppiriD  as  ni'hnD 
(chap.  li.  9),  i.e.  broken,  destroyed,  and  bereft  of  strength.  The 
meaning  is :  His  severe  pain  and  sufferings  of  heart  and  soul 
resulted  purely  from   his  distress   for  our    sins  and  for  what 


-liii.  8.]  II.  THANHUM    OF  JERUSALEM.  555 

he  saw  of  our  failings.  "in"iDn3,  hy  his  union  and  connexion 
with  us  healing  at  last  reached  us,  and  our  sickness  and  punish- 
ment came  to  an  end.  ®  We  all  were  fjoing  astray  like  sheep, 
every  one  went,  as  he  chose,  after  his  own  devices,  for  want  of  a 
leader  or  shepherd  to  guide  us,  i.  e.  our  actions  were  like  those 
of  beasts  which  just  follow  the  path  pointed  out  by  nature, 
without  thought  or  reflection,  and  without  distinguishing  what  is 
hurtful  from  what  is  beneficial.  Seeing  this  state  of  things, 
he  was  so  pained  by  it,  that  at  last  God  caused  the  sins  of  us 
all  to  attach  themselves  as  a  punishment  to  him ;  in  the  words 
of  the  propliet,  But  the  Lord  caused  the  iniquity  of  us  all  to  light 
upon  him.  Others  explain  let  him  intercede,  from  the  sense 
borne  by  the  root  in  Jer.  vii.  16  ;  God,  that  is,  accepted  his 
intei'cessiou  for  them,  liberated  them  fi'om  their  sins,  and  gave 
them  his  aid.  '^  Unceasingly  he  was  oppressed,  tormented,  afflicted, 
and  pained  in  heart ;  C'33  with  the  same  idea  of  oppression  and  dis- 
tress as  Exod.  V.  1 3,  Deut.  xv.  2  ;  and  njyj  in  the  sense  of  broken 
and  humiliated,  as  Exod.  iii.  7,  x.  3,  Is.  Iviii.  10.  '*  He  tvas  taken 
from  imprisonment  and  restraint,  for  judgment  was  pronounced 
against  him,  i.e.  he  was  one  of  the  generation  which  suffered  un- 
just judgments  in  exile,  and  there  was  no  one  who  would  declare 
about  him  :  ixy,  as  2  Kings  xvii.  4.  According  to  others  "i^'yiD 
means  from  sovereignty,  compai'C  11^%  i  Sam.  ix.  17  ;  the  former 
explanation  is  however  sounder,  and  gives  a  better  sense.  DNI 
'131  TTll,  there  was  not  one  among  his  contemporaries  who  would 
describe  his  perfection  or  declare  his  excellences.  nniB',  as  Ps. 
cxliii.  5,  formed  by  doubling  the  last  radical  from  n"'K',  Ps.  cv.  2. 
For  he  was  cut  off  from  the  land  of  (lie  living,  i.  e.  his  merits 
were  not  known,  nor  his  perfections  and  excellences  described, 
until  after  his  death,  and  his  departure  from  the  world  of  the 
living,  i.  e.  the  present  world  of  sense,  as  in  Job  xxviii.  13 
(where  the  words  '  neither  is  she  found  in  the  land  of  the  livinir ' 
mean  that  wisdom  is  not  found  or  known  in  the  living  world). 
And  the  same  has  been  the  fate  of  all  the  prophets  and  of  all 
pious  and  learned  men.     They  are  not  known  or  described  as 


556  R.  TllANllUM    OF   JERUSALEM.  [liii.  9- 

their  merits  aud  excellences  really  deserve ;  no  one  thinks  to 
obtain  a  blessing  through  them  or  visits  them  to  gain  their  inter- 
cession, until  they  are  removed  from  this  world  ;  as  long  as  they 
are  alive  no  one  pays  them  any  attention.  ID?  for  "1^,  or  1)0^) 
itself  must  be  taken  in  the  sense  of  every  one  of  them.  The 
meaning  is  that  all  his  afflictions,  all  the  punishment  and  suffer- 
ings of  captivity  which  fell  upon  him,  wex'e  for  their  sins  and 
transgressions,  in  virtue  of  the  justly  merited  judgment  of  God. 
It  is  thus  that  when  they  have  paid  the  debt  which  God  has 
adjudged  to  be  due  from  them,  he  then  sends  them  a  person  who 
will  guide  them  aud  deliver  them.  The  person  here  described 
is  such  a  guide  or  deliverer,  who  rescues  them  from  captivity  and 
from  their  enemies  generally.  ®  This  is  the  description  of  his 
former  condition ;  he  was  necessarily  associated  closely  with  the 
wicked,  obliged  to  frequent  their  company  and  share  their  for- 
tunes, for  the  purpose  of  giving  them  counsel  and  direction,  and 
bringing  them  out  of  darkness  into  light,  and  from  death  into 
life  ;  and  also  for  another  reason,  viz.  because  in  his  day  he  could 
find  none  with  whom  to  associate  at  all,  except  such  as  those. 
But  he  behaved  amongst  them  as  though  he  were  as  dead  as 
they  were  themselves ;  he  did  not  imitate  them  in  their  deeds  of 
wickedness,  he  only  had  to  do  with  them  so  far  as  was  neces- 
sary for  their  guidance  to  the  right  way,  discarding  all  complicity 
with  their  works,  for  the  sake  of  his  own  happiness.  The 
version  of  the  translator^  is  : — '  And  he  made  him  a  grave  with 
the  evildoers,  desiring  to  die,  and  with  the  rich  in  his  death, 
as  though  wicked  himself  l*,  although  he  had  done  no  violence, 
neither  was  there  any  guile  in  his  mouth.'  In  spite  of  all  this, 
the  will  of  God  will  ultimately  be  accomplished  by  his  hands, 
and  through  him  his  pleasure  will  prosper  and  be  established. 
'"  Only,  as  God  desired  to  prove  him,  he  broke  him  by  sickness, 
and  disti'acted  him  with  pain,  in  order  that  the  perfection  of  his 
character  and  his  resignation  might  be  visible  to  tlie  world, 

»   11.  Sa'adyah,  the  Ga'on  :  see  p.  18.  ^  Sense  doubtful. 


-liii.  12.]  K.  THANHUM    OF   JERUSALEM.  557 

as  also  his  unalterable  devotion  to  his  JNIaker,  in  enduring 
patiently  his  judgments  without  wavering  or  perturbation  of 
mind.  The  N  of  N"'?nn  is  in  place  of  the  radical  n  in  n?n, 
the  word  being  formed  as  N''C3nn  from  NDH ;  the  regular  form 
would  be  n^nn,  like  mpn,  Gen.  xxvii.  20.  ^^ Because  he  laid 
bare  his  soul  to  death,  hazarding  his  life  in  the  presence  of  liis 
enemies  in  the  accomplishment  of  God's  purpose ;  and  for  this 
end  exposed  his  soul  to  terrible  dangers.  'iJI  p7,  tlierefore  will 
I  give  him  a  portion  luith  the  nohle,  i.  e.  with  the  great  ones 
of  that  time,  and  with  the  mighty,  i.  e.  with  illustrious  poten- 
tates, he  will  divide  the  spoil,  the  general  sense  being  like  that 
of  the  verse  i  Chron.  xvii.  8 :  amongst  all  kings  and  nobles  he 
will  be  specially  protected,  and  every  one  who  attempts  to  oppose 
him  he  will  spoil,  and  drive  back  discomfited.  And  all  this  after 
he  had  been  numbered  amongst  sinful  transgressor's,  since  men 
judged  only  from  his  external  appearance  and  did  not  penetrate 
to  his  hidden  nature,  the  mystery  connected  with  him  not  being 
revealed  to  them.  They  imagined,  therefore,  that  all  this  was  a 
punishment  on  him  for  the  enormity  of  his  sins,  whereas  in  fact 
he  had  committed  no  sin  worthy  of  such  punishment  at  all, 
but  was  even  interceding  for  transgressors,  that  so  their  sins 
might  be  forgiven.  Such  is  the  meaning  of  the  prophet's  words, 
But  lie  bare  the  sin  of  many ;  compare  Ps.  Ixxxv.  3,  Exod. 
xxxii.  3  2  :  in  spite  of  that  he  made  intercession  for  those  wicked 
ones  who  thought  evil  of  him :  in  his  humility  he  did  not  hate 
them  for  their  behaviour  towards  him,  or  forsake  them  and 
withdraw  himself  from  them,  but  interceded  for  them  (yjS'',  like 
yjsn,  Jer.  vii.  16).  By  D''J?C1S  are  denoted  those  specially  guilty 
sinners  who  make  defection  in  the  fundamental  doctrines  of 
religion  and  deny  them,  according  to  the  use  of  the  word  yB'S 
in  Scriptui'e  of  repudiation  or  denial  (Exod.  xxii.  8). 

The  exposition  here  concluded  has  followed  throughout  the 
plain  and  open  sense  of  the  words  of  the  text,  and  their  orderly 
progression  one  after  the  other  (as  you  have  seen),  in  accordance 
with  the  principle  that  there  is  nothing  allegorical  in  the  terms 


558  11.  THANHUM    OF   JERUSALEM.  [liii.  12. 

employed,  a  principle  established  by  the  general  custom  not  only 
of  the  prophet  in  all  the  rest  of  hi?  writings,  but  also  of  the 
other  prophets  in  most  of  theirs.  As  we  have  explained,  the 
method  of  the  prophets  is  to  represent  fi  "'^ely  to  the  multi- 

tude such  truths  as  they  can  comprehent  ^  words  and  phrases 
with  which  they  are  familiar,  and  in  this  way  to  imprint  in 
their  mind  useful  doctrines  concerning  mr  iters  of  this  world,  so 
far  as  the  majority  are  able  to  grasp  them ;  /  the  masses  have 
not  the  mental  power  to  understand  things  such  as  these  in  their 
true  nature,  as  they  are  understood  by  th(  ^.hets,  and  by 
wise  or  learned  men.  And  the  further  princij^ie  has  also  been 
kept  in  view  that  in  no  part  of  these  verses  is  there  anything 
hyper])olical  beyond  what  is  elsewhere  permitted  (as  has  been 
frequently  explained),  or  indeed  any  other  departure  from  the 
usual  custom  of  the  prophets  in  their  discourses,  such  as  we  have 
several  times  remarked  on  in  previous  parts  of  our  commentary. 
We  repeat  that  we  have  adhered  throughout  to  the  clear  and 
palpable  sense  borne  by  the  woi'ds  of  the  text. 


LIV.  THE  KHOZARI  AND  ITS  COMMENTATORS. 

'J- 
.    Y'hudah  hal-Levi. 

We  [i.  e.  the  Israelites]  are  uot  in  the  condition  of  those  who 
are  dead,  but  i^  •  of  a  person  emaciated  by  sickness,  of  whose 
recovery  the  phyfefcians  despair,  but  who  still  desires  eagerly  to 
be  cured  by  some  miracle  or  interruption  of  the  ordinary  course 
of  nature  :  as  it  is  said,  'Can  these  bones  live  V  (Ezek.  xxxvii.  3.) 
Similarly  in  the  desci'iption  given  of  the  subject  of  the  Parashah 
Behold  my  servant,  '  He  had  no  form  nor  comeliness,  and  we  hid, 
as  it  were,  our  faces  from  him '  {Is.  liii.  3),  i.  e.  his  disfigured 
and  loathsome  appearance  caused  him  to  be  ti'eated  like  some 
filthy  object,  the  sight  of  which  fills  people  with  disgust,  and 
impels  them  to  turn  their  faces  from  it :  Despised  and  forlorn 
of  men,  a  man  of  pains  and  known  to  sickness. 

Says  the  Khazar:  How  can  that  be  an  allusion  to  Israel, 
when  the  prophet  continues.  Surely  he  hath  borne  our  sicknesses  ? 
whatever  has  fallen  upon  Israel  has  fallen  upon  them  for  sins 
of  their  own. 

Says  the  Haber :  But  Israel  is  amongst  the  nations  what  the 
heart  is  amongst  the  members  of  the  body  * :  it  suffers  most  of 
all,  and  is  in  health  most  of  all. 

B.      R.    Sh'lOMOH    ben    M'NAHEMb. 

LII.  "  The  prophet  having  foretold  the  exile  and  the  advent 
of  the  Redeemer,  describes  now  the  prosperity  of  our  nation 

"  Cf.  pp.  228,  246. 

^  Introduction  in  O :  The  commentator  says,  Perceiving  the  diversity 
of  opinion  on  the  interpretation  of  the  Pai'ashah  Behold  my  servant,  insomuch 
that  some  of  our  Rabbis  apply  it  to  the  King  Messiah,  while  others  (amongst 


560  THE    KTIOZARI    AND    ITS    COMMENTATORS.         [Hi.  14- 

under  the  two  figures  that  follow  (vcr.  13).  First  of  all,  he 
assures  us  that,  in  spite  of  our  being  in  captivity,  we  shall 
never  revert  to  a  condition  of  imbecility  or  other  mental  inca- 
pacity ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  that  the  more  we  suffer,  the  more 
we  shall  he  wise,  and  the  greater  our  knowledge  will  become ; 
and  afterwards,  when  the  Redeemer  is  come,  he  announces  that 
we  shall  be  high  and  exalted.  "  In  this  verse  he  describes  the 
pains  and  the  sufferings  which  will  befal  Israel  in  exile,  declaring 
how,  by  Israel's  single-hearted  devotion  to  the  contemplation  of 
wisdom,  he  forsook  all  carnal  desires,  and  freed  himself  from  the 
yoke  of  the  material  woidd  :  As  many  ivere  astonished  at  thee, 
etc.,  i.  e.  so  completely  did  he  give  his  reason  the  control  of  his 
desires,  that  many  were  amazed  at  him,  at  the  sight  of  his  marred 
and  altered  form.  ^^  The  kings  of  the  nations  and  their  nobles 
will  shut  their  mouth  at  this  marvel,  and  not  utter  a  word  :  for 
the  news  of  it  did  not  reach  them  merely  by  hearsay,  but  they 
beheld  it  eye  to  eye. 

LIII.  ^  The  kings  of  the  nations  are  next  represented  as 
asking.  Who  would  have  believed  such  a  thing,  had  it  reached 
him  by  hearsay  or  tradition  1  Or  it  may  be  that  Isaiah  means 
here  to  allude  to  the  '  servant '  mentioned  above,  asking,  with 
reference  to  him.  Who  could  believe  this  great  marvel  ?  And  the 
a/rm  of  tlie  Lord,  i.  e.  his  greatness  and  the  rich  profusion  known 
to  be  in  him,  xipon  whom,  has  it  been  revealed  ?  "^  This  rich 
profusion  is  like  a  yovmg  plant  having  its  root  in  a  dry  and 


them  the  Haber)  think  that  it  relates  to  our  captivity,  I  have  thought  it  well 
to  give  the  explanation  of  my  master,  as  contained  in  his  Testimony  to  Israel 
[a  commentary  on  the  Khozari],  in  which  he  follows  generally  the  opinion 
of  the  author  of  the  Khozari. 

Introduction  in  M  :  The  words  of  the  Haber  in  explanation  of  this  Para- 
shah  are  few.  In  order  to  convey  his  meaning  somewhat  more  fully,  I  shall 
give  here  the  exposition  of  my  master  in  his  work,  the  name  of  which  is 
known  in  Israel  as  the  Testhuony  to  Israel.  In  this  exposition  he  follows 
closely  the  author  of  the  Khozari,  but  expresses  his  views  at  considerably 
greater  length. 


-liii,  S.]  THE  KHOZART  AND  ITS  COMMENTATORS.  561 

desolated  soil,  and  lacking  its  proper  moisture ;  it  cannot,  there- 
fore, but  be  something  superhuman  i"  and  spiritual.  He  hath 
no  form  nor  comeliness, — the  profusion  which  has  come  upon 
him  from  God  is  entirely  intellectual  and  not  material,  and  we 
see  it  with  the  eye  of  the  intellect,  although  it  Tias  no  form,  but 
is  entirely  abstract,  therefore  ice  desire  it.  ^And  this  also  is 
a  great  marvel,  how  such  an  intellect,  clothed  in  a  form  trans- 
cending all  others,  could  be  with  that  '  wise '  servant,  while  he 
was  despised  and  frailest  of  men :  in  what  follows  the  projihet 
declares  how  this  pain  and  sickness  was  incurred  by  him  de- 
signedly, because  he  liid  his  face  from  his  body,  being  cniel  towards 
his  material  frame,  through  commiseration  for  his  soul.  It  was 
of  his  own  will  that  he  was  thus  frail  in  body,  and  despised  ; 
but  we  did  not  understand  this  at  the  beginning,  for  we  thought 
that  such  sufferings  were  natural  to  him.  *  His  calamities  are  not 
the  consequence  of  his  own  deeds,  but  on  account  of  the  multi- 
tude of  our  sins  and  iniquities,  yet  we  esteemed  him  stricken  and 
smitten  of  God  for  his  own  sins.  ^  The  general  sense  expressed 
by  the  prophet  in  these  verses  is,  that  our  exile  is  not  the  result 
of  our  own  transgressions,  our  follies,  and  want  of  knowledge 
(and  hence  he  begins,  '  Behold  my  servant  shall  deal  loisely '), 
but  has  been  caused  by  the  sin  and  wickedness  of  the  evil 
generation  of  his  own  time^l.  Accordingly  he  continues  here, 
But  he  was  wounded  for  our  transgressions,  bruised  for  our 
iniquities,  etc.,  i.  e.  we  are  enjoying  prosperity  and  peace,  whilst 
he  remains  under  chastisements ;  thus  his  stripes  are  healing 
for  us,  because  he  bears  what  ought  to  have  been  borne  by  us. 
*  Our  prosperity  is  certainly  not  in  consequence  of  the  integrity 
of  our  way,  for  all  we  like  sheep  have  gone  astray.  ''  lie  was 
oppressed,  etc.,  yet  he  opened  not  his  mouth,  for  he  bare  the 
punishment  of  his  own  will.  *  From  sovereignty,  from  absolute 
power  and  the  unlimited  control  of  his  bodily  desii'cs,  he  was 
taken  ;  and  the  history  of  his  generation,  or  the  many  afflictions 

'  Lit.  glorious.  ^  Comp.  p.  419. 

O  o 


562  THE  KHOZAKI  AND  ITS  COMMENTATORS.  [liii.  y- 

wliicli  will  befal  him  in  his  clays,  who  can  declare  or  describe  1 
For,  besides  all  this,  lie  ivas  cut  off  from  the  land  of  life,  i.e. 
from  the  chosen  land.  '■'  He  made  his  grave  with  the  tvicked 
in  an  unclean  land,  and  his  death  with  tlie  rich  or  with  '  princes 
that  had  gold,'  that  'fed  delicately,'  but  who  will  remain  for 
ever  in  the  ruin  of  their  intelligence.  "*  Yet  it  pleased  the  Lord 
to  bruise  him;  the  prophet  represents  him  in  exile  as  a  broken- 
down  invalid,  despaired  of  by  physicians,  who  can  only  recover 
by  means  of  a  miracle.  The  prophet  next  uses,  with  reference 
to  him,  a  phrase  implying  the  highest  praise.  If  his  soul  shall 
make  a  trespass,  he  ivill  see  seed,  etc.,  as  though  to  say  that  his 
exile  was  not  forced  upon  him,  but  was  incurred  voluntarily, 
for  if  he  had  taken  it  upon  his  soul  to  accept  the  creed  of  his 
enemies,  he  would  have  seen  seed  and  prolonged  his  days  in 
'  quietness  and  rest '  (to  use  the  Haber's  own  phrase  ^) ;  indeed, 
a  single  word,  which  could  have  been  spoken  by  him  without 
the  slightest  trouble,  would  have  made  him  the  equal  of  his 
oppressor.  And  therefore  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord  shall  prosper 
in  his  hand,  viz.  (as  explained  by  Abraham  ibn  'Ezra)  '  by 
cleaving  to  him'  (Deut.  xi.  22),  both  at  the  beginning  and* at 
the  end  [i.  e.  continually].  Or  the  vei-se  may  be  understood 
to  mean  that  the  Lord  was  pleased  to  bruise  him  in  order  to 
see  if  his  soul  would  take  the  guilt  upon  itself,  saying,  '  My  sins 
have  caused  this'  (Jer.  v.  25);  and  therefore  that  in  the  end 
he  should  see  seed,  should  prolong  his  days  in  his  kingdom, 
and  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord  should  2)i'osper  in  his  hand.  **  God's 
servant,  Israel,  will,  however,  do  still  more  in  exile  :  he  will 
tell  every  one  how  for  the  mischief,  i.  e.  the  falseness  and 
wickedness,  of  his  soul  he  will  see  calamities,  and  have  his  fill 
of  chastisements.  But  Israel  will  also  accomplish  something 
further  :  by  his  knowledge,  i.  e.  by  his  intelligence  and  perfect 
wisdom,  he  will  cleanse  and  justify  the  many  former  generations 
from  trespass  and  sin,  declaring  that  they  were  righteous  and 

•  See  p.  659. 


I 


-liii.  12.]         THE  KHOZARI  AND  ITS  COMMENTATORS.  563 

had  not  sinned ;  while  with  himself  the  case  would  be  the  con- 
trary', for  their  iniquities  he  should  hear.  ^^The  prophet  now 
foretells  to  him  the  deliverance,  the  general  gathering  of  exiles 
and  their  return  to  the  chosen  land  with  abundance  of  worldly 
possessions.  Because  he  hare  the  sin  of  many,  etc.,  i.  e.  because 
he  bare  in  captivity  the  guilt  of  former  generations ;  but  in  spite 
of  this  he  will  judge  them  with  leniency,  and  intercede  with 
the  Almighty  that  he  would  bring  them  forth  out  of  exile  for 
their  own  merit.  Such,  briefly,  is  the  view,  presenting  some 
novelties  of  interpretation,  which  I  have  to  offer  of  the  general 
sense  of  this  Parashah. 


LV.     R.  GERSHOM    BEN    NATHAN. 


LII.  "  Behold  in  the  latter  days  my  servant,  i.  e.  tlie  righteous 
ones,  shall  2)i'osper.  Shall  he  high,  etc.,  i.e.  shall  be  exalted  exceed- 
ingly. '^*As  many  were  astonished  and  amazed  at  your  humilia- 
tion, saying  of  you,  '  aS'o  marred^  etc.,  i.  e.  '  so  disfigured  are 
their  countenances  that  they  no  longer  bear  any  resemblance 
to  other  men,'  so  will  Israel  now  cut  oj^,  and  scatter  the  '  horns  * ' 
or  reputation  of  the  nations,  so  that  they  will  be  amazed  at 
him,  and  kings  will  shut  their  mouth  at  the  greatness  then  to 
be  discerned  in  Israel, — greatness  so  extraordinary  that  (as  it  is  - 
written,  Ps.  Ixv.  i,  'Unto  thee  silence  is  praise')  none  will  be-  1 
able  to  tell  it, — and  will  be  observing  diligently  that  which 
is  done  for  them. 

LIII.  ^  Who  would  have  believed  ?  etc. :  If,  the  nations  will 
exclaim,  if  we  had  merely  heard  the  like  of  this,  and  had  not  seen 
it,  we  should  not  have  believed  it ;  nor  should  we  have  credited 
that  the  arm  and  might  of  the  Lord  had  been  revealed,  as  it  has 
now  been  revealed,  upon  Israel :  for  previously  all  greatness  had 
belonged  to  the  nations.  '''lie  came  up  like  a  young  plant : 
whereas  before  they  had  been  in  a  condition  of  extreme  lowli- 
ness, they  have  now  started  up  rapidly  to  great  dignity.  And 
like  a  root  which,  emerging  at  first  out  of  the  dry  and  arid  soil, 
and  devoid  of  comeliness,  becomes  in  time  a  beautiful  tree. 
And  when  we  looked  at  them  at  the  beginning,  they  had  no 
beauty  such  that  we   might  desire   them ;    rather  were  they 


Comp.  Zech.  ii.  4  ;  and  see  p.  37. 


1 


liii.  3-8.]  R.  GERSHOM    BEN    NATHAN.  565 

humiliated  aud  despised ;  but  now  all  this  is  reversed.  ^Des- 
pised and  forlornest  of  men,  viz.  in  former  times  :  the  prophet 
speaks  of  Israel  collectively  as  an  individual,  as  repeatedly 
elsewhere.  A  man  of  pains,  i.  e.  of  afflictions ;  ami  broken  of 
sickness,  i.  e.  the  suffei'ings  of  sickness  :  such  also  was  their 
abasement  that,  like  men  stricken  [with  leprosy],  they  hid  their 
faces  and  were  ashamed.  And  this  was  the  estimation  in  which 
we  held  them  univei'sally.  *But  now  we  see  that  the  sickness 
and  pains  which  properly  were  ours  were  borne  by  them  on  our 
account ;  for  by  the  sufferings  of  Israel  atonement  will  be  made 
for  all  nations.  Yet  we  imagined  that  they  were  smitten  of  God 
for  guilt  of  their  own  :  this  however  was  not  so ;  they  were 
stricken  and  smitten  for  our  sakes.  ppritt,  pierced  or  wounded, 
as  7?n,  Jer.  xiv.  18  etc. :  NDIO,  bruised,  as  Ti,  Ps.  Ixxiv.  21. 
^  V^y  IJOvC'  "iDItt,  an  inversion  (as  it  appears  to  me)  for  I^Dlisiy 
IvJ?  "IDIO,  as  though  to  say  that  the  peace  which  we  enjoyed  was 
not  owing  to  our  own  righteousness,  but  because  Israel  for  their 
iniquity  had  received  upon  themselves  the  punishment  which 
ought  to  have  come  upon  us.  IJ7  NS"i3  "in"i2n3%  i.  e.  in  con- 
sequence of  the  stripes  (Exod.  xxi.  25)  which  fell  upon  him, 
we  were  healed.  *  We  have  now  gone  astray, — it  is  here  declared 
how  all  the  nations  have  erred  in  their  belief.  We  have  turned 
each  to  his  own  way,  i.  e.  up  to  the  present  time  each  of  us  has 
been  following  his  own  evil  course,  yjsn,  the  Almighty,  un- 
willing to  destroy  his  woi'ld,  is  represented  by  the  prophet  as 
punishing  Israel;  for  Israel  sufifered  in  our  stead.  "^ lie  was 
oppressed,  bowed  down,  and  sorely  afflicted  under  the  hands  of  the 
Gentiles,  yet  he  opened  not  his  mouth  in  spite  of  all  the  abuse  and 
violence  to  which  he  was  exposed  continually.  ?2V,  was  brought. 
Before  her  shearers,  i.  e.  before  such  as  are  desirous  to  shear  her. 
Dumb,  viz.  from  terror.  And  openeth  not  his  mouth,  referring 
to  the  sheep  led  to  the  slaughter,  because  *  sheep '  is  masculine, 
whereas  'lamb'  is  feminine.  ^From  the  confinement  in  which 
he  was  kept  amongst  us  in  exile,  and  from  the  judgment  of 
sufferings  and  afflictions  in  the  midst  of  which  he  lived,  Israel 


566  R.  GERSHOM    BEN    NATHAN.  [liil.  9- 

now  is  taken.  All  this  is  supposed  to  be  spoken  by  the  Gentiles 
in  the  future.  And  his  generation — i.  e.  all  the  punishments 
which  befel  them  one  generation  after  another — who  is  able 
to  describe  ?  for  from  the  beginning,  they  have  been  cut  off  and 
expelled  from  the  land  of  Israel,  here  termed  the  land  of  life. 
For  the  transgression  of  his  i^eople  this  stroke — i.  e.  the  distress 
which  they  suffered — came  to  them.  The  prophet  means  to  refer 
to  Israel.  1D7,  i.  e.  came  to  him.  ^  He  made  his  grave  at  the 
will  of  tlie  wicked,  i.  e.  resigned  himself  to  be  buried  in  the 
manner  determined  by  those  wicked  heathen  who  decreed  death 
against  him.  And  at  the  will  of  the  rich  in  his  deaths,  for  before 
the  rich  magistrate  Israel  was  forced  to  submit  himself  to  all  the 
varied  forms  of  death  to  which  he  was  sentenced.  And  why 
was  Israel  thus  treated  1  The  prophet  gives  the  answer  : 
because  he  would  not  consent  to  do  Avrong — e.  g.  to  rob  or 
commit  violence — like  the  nations,  and  because  there  was  no 
deceit  in  his  mouth, — his  mouth  was  like  his  heart,  and  would 
in  no  way  acknowledge  their  false  Avorship.  ^'^  But  the  Almighty 
was  pleased  to  bruise  Israel,  and  so  to  lead  him  back  to  pi'os- 
perityb  :  he  therefore  alEflicted  them  with  sore  sicknesses.  QX 
31  D"'Cn  :  the  Almighty  says,  If  his  soul  is  so  devoted  to  me  in 
holiness  as  to  return  itself  to  me  as  a  trespass-offering — which 
makes  atonement  for  iniquity — then  he  shall  see  seed,  etc.,  i.  e. 
shall  see  his  descendants  walking  before  him  in  his  life-time, 
and  shall  prolong  his  days,  and  desire  from  the  Lord  shall  pn'osper 
in  his  hand,  i.  e.  what  he  desires  to  obtain  from  him,  God  will 
send  into  his  hand  and  cause  it  to  prosper.  ^^From  the  travail 
of  his  sold  lie  shall  see  and  be  satisfied — he  will  be  worthy  to  see 
the  labour  of  his  hands  in  his  own  possession,  and  to  reap  the 
full  enjoyment  of  it,  being  neither  dependent  upon  the  assistance 
of  otiiers,  nor  reduced  to  the  necessity  of  stealing.  By  his  knoW' 
ledge  he  will  justify  the  just,  i.  e.  establish  his  innocence,  and  not 
pervert  justice.     My  servant  to  many,  i.  e.  my  servant  will  award 

^  Comj).  p.  39. 


-liii.  12.]  R.  GERSIIOM    BEN    NATHAN.  567 

justice,  will  mete  out  judgment  faithfully,  to  many.  And  tlieir 
iniquities — i.  e.  the  iniquities  of  the  many — /ie  will  bear,  as» 
happens  generally  with  the  righteous,  one  interceding  for  others 
in  order  that  they  may  escape  unpunished.  '^  Therefore,  i.  e.  on 
account  of  this,  /  will  divide  thee  a  lot  and  an  inheritance  with 
the  many,  i.  e.  thou  shalt  appear  to  the  multitude,  and  be 
reckoned  by  those  who  see  thee,  to  be  as  the  old  patriarchs. 
And  similarly  with  tlie  mighty,  i.  e.  with  those  distinguished  for 
valour,  he  shall  divide  spoil.  Because  he  poured  out  his  soul 
to  die,  i.  e.  resigned  his  life  for  the  sanctity  of  heaven,  and  was 
numbered  with  the  transgressors,  endured  much  suffering  as 
though  he  had  been  a  sinner  and  transgi-essor  himself.  Yet 
in  this  he  bare  the  sin  of  others,  and  made  intercession  for  the 
transgressors,  i.  e.  for  the  transgressors  who  were  suffering,  the 
prophet  interceded  with  the  Almighty,  and  the  Almighty  through 
his  means  gave  prosperity  to  the  world. 


568  SHORT    PASSAGES. 


X.     Levi  ben  Gershom. 

It  follows  necessarily  from  this  verse  (Deut.  xxxiv.  lo)  that 
no  prophet  whose  ofl&ce  was  restricted  to  Israel  alone  could  ever 
arise  again  like  Moses  ;  but  it  is  still  quite  possible  that  a 
prophet  like  Moses  might  arise  among  the  Gentile  nations.  In 
fact  the  Messiah  is  such  a  prophet,  as  it  is  stated  in  the  Midrash 
on  the  verse,  Behold  my  servant  shall  prosper,  etc.,  that  he  will 
be  'greater  than  Moses,'  which  is  explained  to  mean  that  his 
miracles  will  be  more  wonderful  than  those  of  Moses ;  Moses,  by 
the  miracles  which  he  wrought,  drew  but  a  single  nation  to  the 
worship  of  God,  but  the  Messiah  will  draw  all  nations  to  the 
worship  of  God,  as  it  is  written  (Zeph.  iii.  9),  '  Then  will  I  turn 
to  the  people  a  jiure  language,  that  they  may  all  call  upon  the 
name  of  the  Lord,'  etc.^  And  this  will  be  eftected  by  means  of 
a  marvellous  sign,  to  be  seen  by  all  nations  even  to  the  ends 
of  the  earth,  viz.  the  resurrection  of  the  dead. 


y.     R.  LiwA  OF  Prague. 

The  Messiah,  who  is  the  perfection  of  the  world,  will  be  high 
and  lofty  and  exalted  :  now,  inasmuch  as  he  is  the  perfection,  he 
is  also  the  consummation,  and  the  consummation  is  above  all 
things,  for  all  tends  thereto  :  and  this  is  why  it  is  said  of  this 
Messiah  that  he  will  be  high  atid  exalted  and  lofty. 

'  A  star  shall  proceed  out  of  Ja'qob,  and  there  shall  arise  a 
sceptre  in  Israel :'  the  King  Messiah  is  here  spoken  of  as  a  star, 
for  (as  we  have  explained  above)  his  position  and  dignity  will  be 
of  the  highest,  since  it  is  said  of  him.  He  will  be  high  and  exalted 
and  lofty  exceedingly.  He  is  here,  therefore,  compared  to  a  star, 
because  a  star  is  elevated  over  all  things. 

?  Comp.  p.  79. 


Alterations  and  Additions  to  page  40. 

^*  As  many  were  astonished  at  thee,  saying,  His  countenance  is 
marred  beyond  man :  how  is  it  possible  that,  in  the  manner 
that  we  see,  the  countenance  of  this  people  should  be  marred 
beyond  man,  and  his  form  beyond  the  other  sons  of  men? 
^^.  •  .  .  For  what  had  not,  etc.  Not  merely  all  the  consola- 
tions foretold  by  the  prophets,  but  even  the  good  things  of 
which  the  nations  had  never  been  told,  they  will  see  then 
fulfilled  in  Israel. 

LIII.  ^  .  .  .  .  had  formerly ;  for  a  countenance  vexed  with 
grief  and  distress  is  widely  different  from  one  smiling  with 
happiness.  And  ive  desire  him  :  for  now  they  are  all  '  pleasant 
to  the  eyes.'  * .  .  .  .  for  our  iniquity  in  following  after  idola- 
trous worships.  ...  ^.  .  .  .  since  they  kept  righteous  ordi- 
nances, and  the  law  of  truth  was  in  their  mouth.  ...  ''.... 
of  falsehood.  We  went  each  after  his  oion  wa?/,— each  in  the 
name  of  his  god ;  but  all  were  vanity  and  *  a  work  of  deceits.' 
Now,  however,  we  know  that  in  all  the  earth  there  is  no  God 
except  in  Israel.  And  the  Lord  laid  iq)07i  him,  upon  Israel, 
the  iniquity  of  us  all.  ''lie — i.  e.  Israel — was  oppressed — such 
is  the  meaning  of  1^33,  as  in  i  Sam.  xiii.  6,  where  it  is  parallel 
to  IV.  njy:,  i.  e.  ivas  humbled,  humiliated,  as  the  Targum  renders 
the  word  in  Exod.  x.  3.  And  opened  not  his  mouth  :  when  any 
one  of  them  was  led  forth  to  execution,  he  opened  not  his  mouth 
before  the  magistrate  Avho  condemned  him,  but  like  a  sheep 
dumb  before  the  slaughterer,  or  a  lamb  before  her  shearers,  so  the 
Israelite  was  silent  before  his  executioner.  ^From  coercion  and 
judgment — from  the  punishments  which  he  cndui'ed  in  exile — 
he  is  now  removed  ;  and  in  his  generation,  at  the  time  when  he 
was  bearing  the  yoke  of  exile,  and  cut  off  from  the  land  of  life, 


570  ALTERATIONS    AND    ADDITIONS    TO    PAGE  40. 

from  all  those  of  his  generation  who  were  still  alive,  lolio  could 
tell  that  they  would  ever  rise  to  such  greatness?  who  ever 
believed  this  of  them  in  the  days  lohen  they  were  dropping 
off  fi'om  the  land  of  life  1  For  the  transgression,  etc.  :  the  men 
of  eveiy  nation  will  say  that  during  the  whole  course  of  their 
affliction  in  exile  no  stroke  ever  fell  upon  them  which  had  not 
been  caused  by  the  trausgi-ession  of  their  own  people  :  it  will  be 
impossible  to  assert  that  they  were  smitten  with  desolation  for 
any  fault  of  their  own,  because  since  we  see  their  gods  con- 
firming now  their  deeds,  we  learn  that  they  must  have  kept  the 
law  of  truth.  This  being  so,  it  is  impossible  to  ascribe  the 
calamities  which  befel  them  to  guilt  of  their  own  :  they  fell  upon 
them  for  the  transgression  of  my  people — for  the  sins  of  the 
nation  observing  such  statutes  as  I  do  myself.  '  Every  nation 
which  condemned  an  Israelite  condemned  him  to  the  punishment 
of  the  wicked,  as,  for  instance,  of  murderers  or  those  guilty  of 
incest ;  and  whatever  form  of  death  was  thus  selected  for  Israel, 
Israel  received  it;  And  the  rich  in  Ms  deaths :  he  endured  the 
death  to  Avhich  any  powerful  and  wealthy  nation  might  sentence 
him.  And  since  there  was  no  violence  in  their  hands  they  were 
murdered  upon  any  arbitraiy  pretext ;  for  the  nations  of  the 
world  tyrannized  over  them  and  consigned  them  to  cruel  deaths, 
because  (as  the  next  verse  says)  the  Almighty  desired  to  justify 
them  in  the  day  of  judgment.  '"As  Solomon  says  (Prov.  iii.  12), 
Whom  the  Lord  delights  in,  he  bruises  him  with  chastisements ; 
and  happy  the  man  who  thus  suffers,  and  admits  the  justice 
of  God's  judgments,  as  the  prophet  proceeds  to  declare,  If  his 
soul  makes  a  trespass-offering,  he  sJuzll  see  seed,  etc.  "As  a 
reward  for  his  deeds,  he  ivill  be  satisfied, — for  having,  viz.,  justi- 
fied the  Just  One  by  bearing  cheerfully  and  heartily  the  yoke  of 
exile  in  order  to  make  the  many  righteous,  as  the  prophet  says, 
il/y  servant,  the  just  one — i.e.  Israel  the  *  righteous  nation' — 
loill  justify  the  many  by  his  knowledge,  by  acquiescing  intel- 
ligently and  willingly  in  his  exile,  and  their  iniquities  he  will 
hear.     '^  It  is  only  fair  that  the  nation  which  justified  the  many 


ADDITION    TO   PAGE  89,    END.  571 

should  have  also  a  portion  allotted  to  it  among  the  many ; 
he  will,  moreover,  divide  spoil  with  the  mighty,  because  he 
jjoured  out  his  soul  to  die — Israel  resigned  themselves  to  mar- 
tyrdom for  the  unity  of  God — and  loas  numbered  ivith  the  trans- 
gressors— for  there  was  no  nation  in  the  world  which  did  not 
deem  Israel  to  consist  of  transgressors. 


Addition  to  page  89,  end. 

The  disciples  of  Jesus  vainly  object  that  this  Parashah  refers 
to  him.  But  if  this  were  so,  how  could  the  Almighty  call  him 
his  '  servant,'  and  say,  '  He  shall  see  seed,  shall  have  long' days  V 
if  he  is  God,  how  can  he  see  seed  1  And  again,  how  could  he 
promise  that  he  would  '  divide  him  spoil  with  the  great  1 '  *  only 
if  they  admit  that  he  was  [not  more  than]  a  prophet  is  such  an 
application  within  the  range  of  human  possibility  ^. 


Correction. 

* 

Page  387,  line  4,  for  Frere  read  Ferrer;  and  see  Gratz,  viii. 
pp.  116-118. 


»  From  a  more  modem  MS. 


INDEX, 


Abbaham,    pages    9,    40,    52,   79, 
''SQj  165  f.,  230,   261,  276-278, 

299.  325- 
Agg^dah,  see  Hagg^dah. 
Aba,  R.,  10,  128. 
Angels,    84,  102,  128,  151   f.,   154, 

167,  260  f.,  326,  353. 
Armilaus,  32. 
Balaam,  442. 

Benjamin  of  Nehawend,  xlii,  31. 
Branch,  the,  33,  64,  145,  374,  385. 
Cuzari,  the,  228,  419,  559. 
David,  9,  19. 
Eden,  14,  394,  396. 
Edom,  44,  132,  429  f. 
Eliezer,  R.,  83. 

Elijah,  20,  24,  61,  135,  268,  394. 
Ezekiel,  24,  29,  63, 113,  203,  384. 
Gehenna,  6,  71,  91, 115. 
Gog  and  Magog,  29,  30,  32,  54  f., 

113,120,136,  186,  203,  255,  etc, 
Haggfldah  (or  Aggildah — the  Ara- 

maizing  form),  7,  39,  84,  124-127, 

282,  333,  353. 
Haggai,  233. 
Hal^hah,  7. 
Hezekiah,  203  ff.,  294,  407  ff.,  413, 

551- 
Hieronymus  k  Sancta  Fide,  xxxii^ 

xxxiii,  Ixxv. 
Huna,  R.,  8,  10,  282. 
Isaiah,  xlii,  Ixi,  413. 
Ishmael,  44,  249. 


Jeremiah,  19,  43,  114,  153  f.,  164, 
400,420,551. 

Jerome,  221,  225,  293  f.,  415,  534  ff., 
549- 

Jesus,  objectionsagainst  the  prophecy 
being  supposed  applicable  to,  55, 
57  ff.,  71,  90  f.,  92-94,  97,  100, 
112,  116,  121-124,  147  ff.,  156- 
162,  243  f.,  318  f.,  342-349.  358. 
375-378,  380.  382,  386,  389  f., 
397-399'  434. 462-475.  571-  See 
'  Introduction,'  pp.  xHii-l,  li-lx. 

Job,  413. 

Joseph  ben  Kaspi,  xxxii,  xliii,  203. 

Josiah,  187  ff.,  406. 

Korah,  270  f. 

Martini,  Raymundus,  v,  xxx-xxx^^. 

Messiah,  43,  no,  203,  205,  216,  229, 

396- 

Messiah,  names  of,  7,  394,  399. 

Messiah,  prophecy  reft-rred  to,  5,  6, 
7,  9,  10,  II,  14,  19  ff.,  33-35,  36, 
78  ff.,  100,  129,  153  f.,  216,  258  f., 

295  ffv    319  ff'.  361,   374.  377.  386, 

394.  395.  396,  398.  399.  400-  ^ee 
also  '  Introduction,'  pp.  Ixii-lxiv. 

Messiah,  reference  to  the  interpreta- 
tion of  the '  Midrash'  relating  to,  39, 
43,  loi  f.,  124, 129,  138, 151, 154, 
165-168,  222  f.,  276,  282,  342. 

Messiah,  son  of  David,  32,  78,  162, 
300,  394- 

Messiah,   sou    of   Ephraim  {or    of 


574 


INDEX, 


Joseph),  i6,  32,  162,  300  ff'.,  321, 

390.  394- 
Metatron,  13, 152,  354. 

Midrash,  7,  39, 124,  209,  386,  al. 

Moses,  8,  10,  15,   16,  56,  80,  163, 

261,  270,  273,  276,  287-289,  298, 

355.  395.  406,  568. 
Moses,  named  in  the  '  Midrash '  with 

Abraham  and  the  angels,  9,  40, 

79i  165-168,  229,  a,r\d 2^assim. 
Moses,  saying  concerning,  273,  287, 

325.  339- 
Mosheh  had-Darshan,  vi,  xxii,  33. 

Nero,  132,  365. 
Origen,  xli,  412. 
Qaraites,  v,  19,  61,  373, 


Eabba,  8,  285. 

Eabbanites,  vii,  87. 

Eashi,  xlv. 

Rome,  xlv,  39,  85. 

Shekhinah   (the  Divine  Presence), 

5,  14,  169,  184,  306,  330. 
Shiloh,  385. 
Shimlai,  R.,  8. 

Shim'on  ben  Yohai,  xli,  xlv,  385. 
Sin,  original,  115,  451  S.,  464. 
Targum  of  Yonathan,  5,   11,   416, 

418,424,  569. 
Temple,  the,  5,  64,  382. 
Uzziah,  413. 
Yo^ianan,  R.,  266. 
Yos^,  R.,  10. 


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